Bakers win babies die

25th August 2009
Media Release from Lyall Thurston
Bakers win babies die

Bakers win babies die

The Bakers Association members’ decision to now voluntarily fortify is likely to have little impact on the number of babies being terminated from neural tube defects, says Lyall Thurston, spokesperson for the Coalition of Parents of Children with Spina Bifida.

“Many women can’t afford anything other than standard white bread, or supplements, or be reached by well-meaning education programmes,” says Mr Thurston.

“The Bakers’ decision is purely commercial. Now they can charge more for folic acid in bread, they can claim the health benefits and they can make it appear superior to the alternatives. All this after a scare mongering campaign which has some women now too afraid to take folic acid. It’s hypocrisy at its very best.

“It’s a grand gesture after all the misinformation they’ve pumped out but it won’t make much difference to the 130 babies that will be born over the next three years with neural tube defects, most of them destined to be terminated.

“The bakers’ have manipulated the public so much for commercial interest and to drive off Government interference. We haven’t seen anything like this in New Zealand before. We just hope to God they’re not rewarded.”

Note to Editors, Chief Reporters

Please stop parroting the myths that the Bakers Association public relations consultants want you to keep repeating: Women would only need to eat 1-2 slices of fortified bread per day as a folate top up to their usual diet; this was not the Aussies, we started this 20 years ago; no research has been forthcoming proving risk because there isn’t any. Every question has been asked and answered. Ireland is a different story because they fortify a lot more foods than we do. Purely voluntary regimes and education programmes don’t work. It’s been proven many times internationally. The info is all there, just look for it.

ENDS