There is no doubt to the benefits of breast milk for the mother, child and our future as a people. Therefore, when an Oregon based company talks about moving into the city of Detroit to help African American mothers breastfeed more and put some money into their pockets at the same time, people start to listen.

However, many people are asking is this for their profit or our exploitation?

Medolac is the the company working with the Clinton Global Initiative as it will “seek to increase breast-feeding rates among urban African-American women” and promote “healthy behavior and prolonged breast-feeding within their communities.”

The idea is to campaign locally growing members willing to provide their breastfeed milk to their milk bank, Mothers Milk Cooperative. This is the only cooperative owned by the donating members. it was started by the Medolac founder Elena Medo in 2013.

Mothers Milk Cooperative pays their approved members (after proper screening and blood test) $1 an ounce for their milk. Sounds like a decent plan on the surface, but the cooperative turns around and processes the milk into a commercially sterile, shelf-stable product to sell hospitals for about $7 an ounce. This is a 600% mark up on what they are paying the mothers.

If this were straight capitalism and everyone knows what they are getting into, then personally, i’d be fine with this venture. However, they are billing this as a benefit and a way to increase the breastfeeding in the African American community. A community who lags behind the rest of the country when it comes to breastfeeding, especially in Detroit.

As we mentioned earlier, breastfeeding is very important to the health and development of the child, but also the mother, so it is very serious business.

According to statistics, Detroit African Americans have one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in the country at under 40%. When you compare this to 70% for white, non-Hispanic mothers in the same city, something definitely needs to be done since we know the benefits to all involved.

Yet, many critics of this business model fail to connect the dots between participating in the Mothers Milk Cooperative and increase breastfeeding rates. Sure, the mothers in Detroit area hospitals who will get some of the commercially sterile, shelf-stable milk produced by Medolac will benefit, but what about when baby leaves the hospital and goes home? If that mother isn’t breastfeeding herself, then that baby will no longer benefit.

What are your thoughts on this enterprise? Is this good for African American mothers and babies or more exploitation of our people for profit and gain?

Source: NY Times