Where Nestle Began
Nestlé began in Switzerland in the mid-1860s when founder Henri Nestlé created one of the first baby formulas, Farine Lactée. It was a carefully formulated mixture of cow's milk, flour, and sugar, and was first used on a premature baby who could not tolerate his mother's milk or other alternative products. It saved his life and within a few years, the first Nestlé product was marketed in Europe.
The Nestlé Company was purchased by Jules Monnerat in 1874 and developed its own condensed milk to compete with the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company. The two companies merged in 1905 and Nestlé had factories in the United States, Britain, Spain and Germany. The start of World War I made it difficult for Nestlé to buy raw ingredients and distribute products. Nestlé purchased several factories in the U.S. to keep up with the increasing demand for condensed milk and dairy products, but when fresh milk became available again after the war, Nestlé suffered and slipped into debt. The price of ingredients was increasing, the economy slowed and exchange rates deteriorated.
Nestlé developed Nescafé in the 1930s and Nestea in the 1940s, revolutionizing coffee drinking and becoming an instant hit. After the Second World War, profits plummeted and Nestlé opened factories in developing countries. In 1947, they acquired Alimentana S.A., Crosse & Blackwell, Findus frozen foods, Libby’s fruit juices, and Stouffer’s frozen foods. In 1974, they acquired Alcon Laboratories, Inc., a major stockholder in L’Oréal cosmetics. Nestlé faced an international boycott due to its marketing of baby formula in developing countries.
The boycott argued that the misuse of formula resulted in malnutrition or the death of many infants. Nestlé agreed to follow the International Code in developing countries in 1984, and the boycott was suspended.
It resumed several years later when organizations believed Nestlé was sending free or low cost baby formulas to developing countries. Nestlé has stopped all public advertising for formulas in developing countries for almost 20 years. On their site today, they claim the following:
“We want to create more enjoyment. To bring better health. To make good nutrition accessible and affordable. And we want to do it all while protecting the planet that we call home.”
Nestlé focused on improving its financial situation and expanding, acquiring Carnation, San Pellegrino, Spillers Petfoods, Ralston Purina, and Nestlé Purina PetCare, forming the industry leader Nestlé Purina PetCare with $81 billion in sales and 470 factories. However, despite all its success and even the scandals the company has overcome, the unethical sourcing of its bottled water still remains. Despite their claim to create more enjoyment and better health, unfortunately, this has not been the case for the residents, especially in Michigan and California.
Sources:
https://www.nestle.com/about/history/nestle-company-history
https://www.englishteastore.com/nestle-history.html
https://couragecalifornia.org/stop-nestle-and-bluetriton-california-water/
Throughout the history of the company it is prevalent that they have encountered a numerous amount of scandals or ethical issues including baby formula.It is very surprising how the company is still up and running even when it's leaders show no compassion for its consumers and mainly focus on its economic benefits and growth
ReplyDeleteI had no idea that the company had such a scandal with baby formula. I know that many formula companies have pushed formula and tried to make breast feeding taboo, even here in the United States. Which is incredibly unfortunately. So, it seems to be that they went into third world countries, convinced them they needed baby formula and then also sold them the water needed for the formula. Corporate greed wins again.
ReplyDeleteI also would have never know that they had such an issue with their baby formula. It was very interesting to see how the company began and changed over time with facing scandals like that.
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