A few weeks ago, we reported on the legal issues of the producer of the Smilk infant formula brand, associated with Prof. Grażyna Cichosz. Notably, the product remains available for purchase online, despite the brand’s owners having informed sanitary authorities that it was being withdrawn from the market.

As previously reported, the brand’s owners rely on pseudoscientific theories – including alleged harms of vegetable fats or fish oils (1, 2, 3) – to stir anxiety about competing products and promote their own, which may not comply with EU requirements.

The brand’s owners are under investigation by the Polish Sanitary Inspectorate (Sanepid) and the District Prosecutor’s Office in Bydgoszcz. Following the publication of our article, Deputy Speaker of the Senate Magdalena Biejat submitted a letter to the Prosecutor General requesting special oversight of the case.

It has now emerged that similar substitute milk products are also being marketed outside Poland.

In collaboration with fact-checkers from Slovakia’s Demagog and Belgium’s public broadcaster VRT NWS, we examined brands linked to the Polish producer. Our findings show that sales and promotional practices surrounding these products raise concerns similar to those seen with Smilk in Poland.

Smilk Products Sold in Belgium Without Sanitary Oversight – in Breach of Regulations

A former employee of the company behind Smilk told us that the Polish manufacturer’s partners are also selling the controversial formula abroad. In Belgium, it is distributed by Tolcetach, a company operating as a consulting firm.

The brand’s products in Belgium are available exclusively online, mirroring the distribution strategy used in Poland. On the Belgian Smilk distributor’s website, we found information confirming that the product being sold in Belgium originates from the Polish manufacturer.

Concerns Regarding Labelling and Product Composition

Annelies Wynant, spokesperson for the Federal Public Service for Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment (FPS), notes that the composition and labeling of some Smilk products do not comply with EU regulations.

The Belgian Smilk website also contains content that violates Belgian rules on the promotion of products intended for infant nutrition.

Moreover, claims suggesting Smilk milk is “similar to breast milk” also appear on the brand’s Polish Facebook page (1, 2, 3). 

According to Wynant, the website places disproportionate emphasis on problems associated with breastfeeding while omitting the benefits of breast milk. “This approach is inconsistent with the regulations governing proper information dissemination,” Wynant states.

In response to our report, the Belgian health authorities informed us that they are considering opening an investigation into the company distributing Smilk in Belgium.

Slovak BabySmilk – A Brand Recognized from TV

In Slovakia, a related brand known as BabySmilk is marketed – and unlike its Polish and Belgian counterparts, it is available in physical retail stores. Michal and Tatiana Domin, a couple identifying themselves as the brand’s “founders,” appeared on a popular television program where they promoted claims about the alleged harmful effects of vegetable fats used in competing products.

We also identified similar claims on BabySmilk’s official Facebook page (1, 2). One post warns: “Attention! Do not buy infant formula containing vegetable oils. Sooner or later, your children may experience problems, including gastrointestinal inflammation and neurological disorders.”

Following the publication of our article, ÚVZ informed us that inspection proceedings had been initiated regarding BabySmilk products, including an inquiry into the brand’s connections with the Polish manufacturer.

Milk Made Solely from Cow’s Milk Ingredients Is Not Suitable for Infants

As in Poland, the Smilk and BabySmilk formulas sold in Belgium and Slovakia consist – according to their declared compositions – exclusively of ingredients derived from cow’s milk (1, 2, 3, 4).

However, scientific research (1, 2, 3) shows that such a product cannot meet legally defined requirements, including those related to polyunsaturated fatty acid content, and is therefore unsuitable for infant consumption.

Prof. Hanna Szajewska, MD, PhD, head of the Department of Pediatrics at the Medical University of Warsaw, explains that cow’s milk alone does not provide all the essential nutrients in the quantities and proportions necessary for an infant’s proper growth and development:

Smilk’s websites and social media channels feature claims suggesting that the brand’s products comply fully with legal requirements for infant formula composition (1, 2). According to Prof. Szajewska, this is not possible:

We Have Notified Authorities in Six More Countries

Our investigations in Poland, Slovakia, and Belgium indicate that Smilk’s sales and promotional practices may violate sanitary regulations and consumer information standards in other markets where the brand operates. Given the scope and nature of these operations, we concluded that it was necessary to alert sanitary authorities in every country where Smilk products were identified as being sold.

We notified authorities in the Czech Republic, Hungary, France, the Netherlands, Kazakhstan, and Egypt.

We emphasized that similar irregularities have been identified across three independent regulatory systems – Poland, Slovakia, and Belgium –  which provides reasonable grounds to suspect that comparable violations may also occur in local markets within these six countries.

We will continue to report on any actions taken by the relevant foreign institutions as new information emerges. Together with our international partners, we will continue to monitor Smilk’s activities.

 

Translated from Polish by Julia Kędziorek