Medela's Bottle Ban: When "supporting" breastfeeding goes too far
And did a too-rigid breastfeeding community CAUSE this?
As both an obstetrician and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), I've spent my career supporting my patients who choose to breastfeed (I don’t currently work separately as an IBCLC, but I apply what I know in the care of my patients). So when I heard that Medela, the company that makes the most commonly used breast pumps in U.S. hospitals and one that nearly every pregnant or postpartum parent has heard of, discontinued the sale of feeding bottles and nipples on July 1, 2025 to comply with the WHO Code, I was frankly stunned. I believe this decision represents a fundamental misunderstanding of what it means to truly support breastfeeding mothers.
So today, I am talking about it.
-Dr. Jen
Medela is doing WHAT?!
A company that makes breast pumps is stopping the production of feeding bottles and nipples that helps deliver pumped breastmilk to babies. This sounds utterly unbelievable.
And yet, it is exactly what they’re doing per the statement on their website:
Why make this choice? They claim it’s to be in compliance with the World Health Organization’s International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes, as they describe here:
It's worth noting that Medela still sells bottles for breast milk collection and storage, but without the compatible nipples (teats) they no longer offer, these bottles can't actually be used to feed babies.
Not only is this ridiculous, it’s a completely incorrect interpretation of this Code.
The WHO Code: Medela doesn’t get it right
The WHO International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes was created in 1981 with a clear purpose: to prevent the aggressive marketing of formula that was undermining breastfeeding worldwide. It was to try to curb coercive advertising tactics that might make women who want to breastfeed think that they can’t.
(Quick note: I want to make it clear that breastfeeding is awesome. Formula is awesome too when it’s desired or needed. This isn’t about pitting one against the other.)
Here’s the key about this code: It doesn't ban the sale or use of products like formula, bottles, or bottle nipples; it simply restricts how they may be promoted and marketed to protect breastfeeding.
See below:
The Code was never intended to prevent parents from accessing the tools they need to feed their own pumped breast milk to their babies—and yes, that includes bottles… whether or not there is formula or breastmilk in them!
Yet here we are, with one of the world's leading breast pump manufacturers deciding that bottles and nipples – essential tools for feeding expressed breast milk – are somehow incompatible with supporting breastfeeding.
Make it make sense.
But is the breastfeeding community actually to blame here?
A quick Google search reveals that many lactation consultants and breastfeeding organizations have long criticized Medela as a violator of the WHO Code. Their concerns center on how Medela markets its bottles, sponsors educational conferences, and uses imagery in advertising that they believe undermines breastfeeding support.
One tangible example of something they’re mad about: Organizations don’t like that Medela has an image of a happy baby on their advertising and states this violates the code because it “idealizes” bottle feeding, which might undermine breastfeeding.
Yes, really.
See the image below from one such website:
As someone who deeply values both the WHO Code's intentions and practical breastfeeding support, I have to respectfully disagree with this interpretation.
When our commitment to breastfeeding becomes so rigid that we criticize a company whose pumps enable millions of parents to maintain their breastfeeding relationships, we've lost sight of our true mission. I suspect this mounting pressure from advocacy groups contributed to Medela's decision to discontinue bottles and nipples—a move that ultimately harms the very families we're trying to support.
This kind of inflexible interpretation is exactly what gives breastfeeding supporters a reputation for being judgmental rather than helpful—and it's pushing companies toward decisions that make life harder for the families we should be championing.
The hypocrisy is staggering
Let's think about this logically: Medela will happily sell you a $400 breast pump, encourage you to pump multiple times a day, and provide storage bags and containers for your precious liquid gold. But when it comes to actually getting that expressed breast milk into your baby…suddenly they're concerned about "promoting" bottle feeding?
W. T. F.
This is where the interpretation of the WHO Code becomes absurd. We're talking about bottles specifically designed to work with breast pumps, made for the express purpose of feeding breast milk to babies.
These aren't bottles of formula being marketed to undermine breastfeeding—they're tools that make nursing possible for millions of breastfeeding parents.
Who this really hurts
This decision doesn't hurt the formula companies or improve global breastfeeding rates. Instead, it undermines the exact people we should be supporting most:
Working mothers who pump: The oodles of birthing people who return to work and maintain their breastfeeding relationships through pumping now have to deal with more barriers?! And wonder if they’re doing something wrong because the company of the pump they use now makes it seems like using a bottle to feed your baby is bad?!
I spent countless hours at work pumping while separated from my babies using—you guessed it—a Medela pump, and it was literally what preserved our years-long breastfeeding relationship. Medela, would you have preferred I’d dropped out of my OBGYN residency and stayed home instead? Or given up feeding my babies how I chose to…all to be “Code compliant”?!
Exclusive pumpers: Those who exclusively pump due to latch issues, NICU stays, or other medical reasons are being abandoned by a company that literally profits from their dedication to providing breast milk.
Mothers with supply challenges: Those who are combo feeding—using both breast milk and formula—may now have to find new bottle systems if they were using the Medela brand. As if they need more work to do…
Healthcare providers: I mentioned that Medela is the most common brand of pumps used in the hospital, which means many of our patients go home using them and the feeding bottles that come with the kit. What are we going to tell them now? “I’m sorry if you and your baby found these bottles worked well, but because you can’t get replacement nipples you’ll have to figure something else out when the time comes. Best of luck!”
What this means for families
Practically speaking, this decision creates several problems:
Increased costs: Instead of buying one coordinated system, families may need to purchase multiple bottle products that may not work as efficiently together. More washing, more sterilizing, and less choice does not a smooth journey make.
Confusion in the market: This sets a precedent that could lead other companies to make similar decisions, further limiting choices for pumping parents.
Reduced support: When systems don't work together seamlessly, it creates more opportunities for breastfeeding to fail.
Might I recommend a better way forward?
The WHO Code's purpose is noble. But we need to interpret it in ways that actually support breastfeeding parents, not create additional barriers.
Companies like Medela should focus on the real intent of the Code: preventing the marketing of products that undermine breastfeeding. Bottles designed to feed expressed breast milk don't undermine breastfeeding – they enable it.
And if they truly did this in response to a breastfeeding community that bullied them into this, then I would ask them to reconsider and remember that new parents and babies need nuance, not inflexible unrealistic interpretations.
Performative compliance that makes life harder for breastfeeding families while doing nothing to address the real barriers to breastfeeding success.
The Bottom Line
This decision is a perfect example of how good intentions can go terribly wrong. While Medela pats itself on the back for WHO Code compliance, real breastfeeding folks are left to figure out how to feed their babies the breast milk they've worked so hard to provide.
The WHO Code was created to protect breastfeeding. Let's make sure our interpretation of it actually does that, rather than making life harder for the very people we're trying to support.
I would love to know what you think of Medela’s announcement. Do you agree with it? Do you think it’s this kind lack of nuance that gives breastfeeding supporters a bad name? I’d love to hear it—drop a comment and let’s chat!
Until next week,
Dr. Jen
Wow.
Maybe this is a sheer covert capitalist move disguised in the "well, WHO says..." language? The bottles and the nipples don't make Medela any money (maybe they are even losing money from production) and this was a fantastic excuse to curb the loss without damaging their outward-facing brand mission? 🤷♀️
I am absolutely gobsmacked. This doesn't make ANY sense whatsoever. Breastfeeding doesnt need to be MORE difficult! Pumping and maintaining lactation is difficult enough as it is. I wonder how this is going to affect us in the hospital, supply-wise (OB RN here)