Mothers' panic as formula milk is rationed by British supermarkets to stop bulk-buyers selling at a profit... to China

Supermarkets are rationing popular brands of formula milk to prevent it being bought in bulk and shipped to China where it can fetch three times the price.

Parents can buy a maximum of two 900g tins of Aptamil or Cow & Gate milk each time they shop at Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons.

The restrictions – requested by Danone which makes both brands – come after students and businessmen were found to be bulk-buying the tins and sending them to China.




Limits: Parents can buy a maximum of two 900g tins of Aptamil or Cow & Gate milk each time they shop at Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons

Some Chinese families living here are filling suitcases with the tins and taking them to China when they visit relatives.

Many Chinese families do not believe their locally-made powdered milk is safe following a scandal in 2008.


Six babies died and 300,000 became ill after drinking formula milk found to have been laced with industrial chemicals to boost protein levels. Demand for foreign-made brands has since soared.






Chinese mistrust of local manufacturers was heightened when last month a firm was found to be selling milk that was five years out of date.

Danone said the restrictions should not cause huge problems for British customers as they tend to buy one tin at a time.

There is also nothing to stop parents going to a second supermarket for two more tins.



Formula: Security guards have been hired at some stores to check customers do not return later that day for another batch of milk for babies (file picture)

But security guards have been hired at some stores to check customers do not return later that day for another batch of milk.

Parenting groups accused the manufacturer of scaremongering and said the restrictions would cause unnecessary anxiety for mothers.


'Even talk of shortages will worry British mums. Not being able to feed your baby hits at the most primeval fears of every mother. And if there are shortages of specific brands, this will cause problems as children get used to the taste of a formula and can be fussy if it is switched for another'

Siobhan Freegard, founder of Netmums

Siobhan Freegard, founder of Netmums.com, said: ‘Even talk of shortages will worry British mums. Not being able to feed your baby hits at the most primeval fears of every mother.


'And if there are shortages of specific brands, this will cause problems as children get used to the taste of a formula and can be fussy if it is switched for another.

‘Baby milk firms get a lot of bad PR so this is an opportunity for them to be straight with consumers and let mums know what is going on.

‘Rising demand in China has been blamed for a whole range of shortages and price hikes from cotton clothing to petrol and diesel.


'While there is no doubt that huge demand could push up the price of milk powder, it is scaremongering to suggest the shelves of British supermarkets will be stripped bare of formula.



Shipped to Shanghai: Many Chinese families do not believe their locally-made powdered milk is safe following a scandal in 2008 (file picture)

‘If demand in China is up as much as is being claimed, it’s an opportunity for formula firms to take on extra workers and create jobs in the UK and around the world to meet demand.’

In February it emerged that mothers were paying four times the price for Aptamil and Cow & Gate milk on eBay because shops had run out.


At the time Danone blamed a ‘production delay’ and there was no mention of products being exported to China.


'We would like to apologise to parents for any inconvenience caused by this limit. We know that most parents only buy one pack at a time, so we hope that the impact of this limit on UK parents will be minimal'

Danone spokesman

There are presently no plans to limit other popular brands such as SMA and HiPP. Danone does not know how long its restrictions will last.

Earlier this year Australia and Hong Kong introduced restrictions after Chinese customers and tourists were found to be sending large quantities of formula milk back home.

A spokesman for Danone said: ‘We understand that the increased demand is being fuelled by unofficial exports to China to satisfy the needs of parents who want Western brands for their babies.


'We would like to apologise to parents for any inconvenience caused by this limit.

'We know that most parents only buy one pack at a time, so we hope that the impact of this limit on UK parents will be minimal.

‘If parents are unable to find their baby’s usual brand of milk, we recommend they try another local store or revisit the store on another occasion.’