Breastfeeding is on the rise in Hong Kong - so why do so many mothers still believe formula milk is more nutritious?
Compared to health initiatives, milk powder scandals are a drop in the ocean when it comes to turning the tide in favour of breastfeeding
In the same week that another milk formula scandal hit the headlines, an annual survey showed the breastfeeding rate among Hong Kong mothers was at an all-time high.
But experts say the two have little to do with each other. Rather, the rise in breastfeeding rates in the territory during the past 20 years (85.8 per cent in 2012) is due to better public education, support, awareness and peer influence.
Many people believe that formula is really nutritious and better for the baby. This scandal is spread by the formula manufacturing companies
"The recent scandals play only a very small part, if any, in the increasing trend," says Dr Leung Wing-cheong, executive committee member of Unicef's Baby Friendly Hospital Initiative Hong Kong Association and chief of service at Kwong Wah Hospital's obstetrics and gynaecology department.
The impact of such negative press is "likely small and short-lasting", says Dr Agnes Marie Tarrant, an associate professor with University of Hong Kong's School of Nursing. "Once the scandals fade from the headlines, the effect does as well."
On August 3, the world's biggest dairy exporter, Fonterra of New Zealand, made headlines when it revealed that a dirty pipe at a processing plant might have tainted whey protein, used in dairy formula, with botulism-causing bacteria.
In serious cases, botulism can paralyse the muscles, leading to respiratory failure. Products from various manufacturers have been recalled in countries from China to Saudi Arabia.
The week the news broke also happened to be World Breastfeeding Week (marked each year from August 1 to 7), when the Unicef-linked Hong Kong association announced the results of its annual survey on breastfeeding (in which all eight public hospitals and 10 private ones in the city participated).