The Marketing Myths of Combo Feeding

Internet savvy formula companies equate exclusive breastfeeding with poor mental health, detrimental to sleep, and incompatible with a career. And it's working.

More and more, we’re seeing a savvier (more sinister) technique in baby formula marketing: advocating for combo feeding. Premium formula brands like Bobbie and MyHeart are using Instagram marketing to speak directly to their target demo of health-conscious women who are willing to spend more on formula for better ingredients. These are women understand the superiority of breastmilk and these organic formula companies know it, so they chose a more insidious marketing tactic which is to equate exclusive breastfeeding with poor mental health, detrimental to sleep, and incompatible with a career. Behold here’s an Insta ad from Bobbie:

via Bobbie

Let me preface by saying, for women who are struggling to keep up their supply-an extremely loaded issue that we’ll be diving into in the coming weeks-combo feeding can feel empowering. Breastfeeding doesn’t have to be all or nothing for every woman, even a teaspoon of breastmilk is better than none. 

However, formula companies are twisting this message, leaving out context and spreading falsehoods that could negatively impact a nursing mother’s supply. Even worse, their ads are directed to women who don’t even need the product. Behold, once more:

Who needs to combo feed? As a lactation consultant, the clients I see who are combo feeding typically have a medical problem like insufficient glandular tissue, a birth trauma they can’t come back from, or breast reduction that results in secondary low supply. I encourage them to keep nursing or pumping in order to provide some breastmilk to the baby because it’s true that every little bit of breast milk helps your baby’s immune system. 

In advertising combo feeding, companies like Bobbie frame exclusive breastfeeding as the problem and formula as a solution. It’s not your rise-and-grind job, your video-game playing husband, an unsupportive family, or society’s complete lack of material support for mothers that’s making breastfeeding hard, it’s just breastfeeding itself is impossible to do as a Modern Woman.