Commodifying Care: Markets in Human Milk

• Author(s) / Creator(s)

  • Lee, Robyn

• SSHRC IG awarded 2019: Human milk is becoming a hot commodity: media reports describe it as "liquid gold" and costing "more than sushi" because of its scarcity and high value (Dutton, 2011). This project will explore emerging practices of human milk exchange. Some mothers donate their milk altruistically, either to public milk banks or informally to friends, family, acquaintances, or to parents found through online forums. Others seek financial compensation for their milk, either selling it privately or providing it to a small but growing number of biotech companies. However, commodifying milk exchange risks exploiting women who sell their milk and stratifying access to milk according to parents' ability to pay for it, as well as the potential for contaminated or diluted milk to be sold, jeopardizing the health of children who consume it.

• Date created

  2018-10-01

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Insight Grant
  • IG
  • SSHRC
  • Ethics
  • Bodily Commodification
  • Care Work
  • Human Milk
  • Breastfeeding
  • Sociology
  • Ethics
  • Women's Studies
  • Biotechnology
  • Family
  • Western Canada
  • Central Canada
  • Atlantic Provinces
  • Canada

• Type of Item

  Research Material

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/r3-7y0w-9h66

• License

  ©️Lee, Robyn. All rights reserved other than by permission. This document embargoed to those without UAlberta CCID until 2024.