Exploited or Empowered? Cambodia bans the export of breast milk.

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Cambodia banned the export of breast milk on Tuesday, putting a stop to the business of a U.S.-based company that had been selling the milk in the United States.

Dozens of Cambodian women have been selling their excess milk to a US based company Ambrosia, which in turn marketed the milk to US consumers who had lactational failure.

Cambodian Cabinet ordered the health minister to put a stop to the practice immediately. The order, issued by Ngor Hong Ly wrote, “Although Cambodia is poor and [life is] difficult, it is not at the level that it will sell breast milk from mothers.”

Several countries around the world run breast milk bank, breast milk is also sold via websites and private networks. This case is controversial because UNICEF made a statement about the practice "exploiting vulnerable and poor women for profit and commercial purposes", and said breast milk should not be commercialized.

UNICEF further reported a fall in number of children breast fed by 10% in recent years.

Ryan Newell, co-owner of Ambrosia said in defense “mothers were allowed to sell their milk only twice a day and were required to wait until their children were at least 6 months old, the age at which the World Health Organization recommends that parents begin adding supplementary food to baby diets.”

"We're not taking away from those children," Newell said from the company's offices in Orem, Utah, south of Salt Lake City. "We're just taking the extra that those mothers would be losing at that point if they start weening their children."

"We've been able to offer these women work where they are earning two to three times what they would be making elsewhere," Newell said. "They're able to stay home with their kids more because they are not working the insane hours."

The women who gave the breast milk were regretful about the ban. Speaking to media, the women said selling their milk gave them a much-needed stable source of income while enabling them to stay at home and take care of their children. They could earn up to $12 a day - a considerable sum.

Some researchers argue that "If the buyer and seller are happy with the process then we have to respect that that is their decision."

The question remains unanswered whether the Cambodian women are exploited because of economic incentive to sell milk and cutting down the supply to their own children or they are empowered by money they earn to support the family?  

The experts do agree that selling human milk across international borders is complex issue which requires extreme scrutiny.  

Sources:

BBC News

Reuters Health