Since the Code's introduction in 1981, the World Health Assembly has passed various resolutions on infant and young child feeding and nutrition. These resolutions were not passed as amendments to the Code, but do have the same status as the Code - they are recommendations to all of its member governments.

This was clarified by the WHO Director General in 1998, who said "the International Code and Assembly resolutions have the same force, the same value. In other words, neither the Code nor any resolution has a real impact and lasting meaning unless countries implement them according to their national laws and practice."

For many years the ambiguity surrounding the duration of exclusive breastfeeding has been a source of ongoing conflict. Some organisations have claimed that the WHO recommendation of "4 to 6 months" was changed to "about 6 months" in a WHA Resolution 1994. WHO made clear that this was not the case.

This conflict has hopefully been solved recently. As a result of a WHO Expert Consultation, the May 2001 World Health Assembly adopted a new recommendation regarding the duration of exclusive breastfeeding. The WHA Resolution on "Infant and young child nutrition" says,

"The Fifty-fourth World Health Assembly... URGES Member States... to strengthen activities and develop new approaches to protect, promote and support exclusive breastfeeding for six months as a global public health recommendation, taking into account the findings of the WHO Expert Consultation (1) on optimal duration of exclusive breastfeeding, and to provide safe and appropriate complementary foods, with continued breastfeeding for up to two years of age or beyond, emphasising channels of social dissemination of the concepts in order to lead communities to adhere to these practices;..."

Nestlé fully supports the implementation of this WHA recommendation by all Member States of the World Health Organisation.

In over 150 developing countries where we unilaterally and voluntarily implement the International (WHO) Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes we will consequently change labels on complementary foods marketed for introduction between 4 and 6 months, to reflect the findings of the expert consultation and the new recommendation of 6 months.

In Europe, and in the United States, Canada, Japan, Korea, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Nestlé supports the adoption of this recommendation into existing national measures and will follow those norms once implemented by governments. (All these have among the lowest infant mortality rates in the world.)

We hope the new WHA recommendation will contribute to an ending of the long-standing debate on this issue and will enable dialogue between governments, health professionals, NGOs and industry to move forward.

1 As formulated in the conclusions and recommendations of the expert consultation (Geneva, 28 to 30 Mars 2001) that completed the systematic review of the optimal duration of exclusive breastfeeding (see document A54/INF.DOC./4)