Some women end up with a bountiful stash of frozen breast milk — be it from oversupply, a baby in the NICU, or an infant who turns out to be allergic to something in the milk pumped so far. Some of those women are moved to donate the excess milk to a non-profit milk bank. In the past few days, I have heard two women express (no pun intended) frustration at the restrictions posted on women who wish to qualify as breast milk donors. One, whose oversupply and dairy-free diet could certainly have benefited a milk bank, was turned away …read more

All it takes is a few moments of your time to vote for the funding proposal for the Mothers’ Milk Bank of New England on IdeaBlob. If enough people vote (and it only took 600 votes for last month’s winner), the fledgling milk bank receives $10,000 that will be used to buy processing and storage equipment, establish a “Milk Money” fund to help families whose insurance does not cover the processing fees for donor milk, and develop marketing materials for the milk bank. Need more information? Tanya at the Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog is spear-heading the effort, after inspiration from The …read more

You do not have to be a breast milk donor to help support your local non-profit mother’s milk bank! Give your time! Many of the milk banks associated with the Human Milk Banking Association of North America rely on the assistance of volunteers. For example, this article in the Orange County Register describes how the Mother’s Milk Bank of San Jose is seeking volunteers for home or office locations in Orange County, California, to serve as “Mother Hubbard” milk depots for the collection of donor milk and distribution of pumping supplies and support.
Check out the contact information below for …read more

No reply from eBay yet on this post. Breast milk has not been added to the group of prohibited and restricted items but the one open listing for human breast milk has been removed. Even though I did not directly alert eBay to that listing, I feel a slight twinge of guilt about my question leading to its removal. The seller is probably a very nice breastfeeding mother who simply had some extra milk. I hope she knows about one of the non-profit milk banks and considers donating her breast milk there.
The former tax lawyer in me wondered …read more

Due to problems with CafePress.com, the Lactivist charity fundraiser has been extended through the end of January. Remember, profits from t-shirt sales during this time benefit the Mother’s Milk Bank of Ohio. So get shopping!

The story of Jill Youse’s donation of breast milk to an orphanage in South Africa has drawn greater attention to milk donation both domestically and internationally. Mothers considering milk donation within the United States should investigate their options carefully. Jennifer at The Lactivist called my attention to the discussion of Prolacta in the today’s Miami Herald. Prolacta is a for-profit company that processes breast milk donations and sells them for considerable profit. The article quotes one source:
“My big issue is that mothers are not being told that their milk is being sold for such a high amount,” said Katy Lebbing …read more