A Weekly Times investigation has revealed many brands of infant milk powder use imported oils, which industry sources said can make up 25 per cent of the total ingredients.
The ingredients on baby formula products reveals a range of oils including palm, soy and coconut oils — most of which are likely to be imported given Australian oil-crushing companies process mainly canola and sunflower oils.
Bellamy’s Organic website says it uses organic soybean — sourced from South America — palm and sunflower oils in its infant formula.
“The combination of soybean oil, palm oil and sunflower oil in our infant formulas provide the correct balance of essential fatty acids in baby’s diet,” the company website says.
Karicare and Aptamil formula, manufactured by Danone Nutricia, lists vegetable oil including soy oil.
A2 milk powder uses soy, coconut and high oleic sunflower oil — a type of oil with lower saturated fats.
Several varieties of high oleic canola are grown in Australia
In some cases companies don’t reveal which type of oil is used.
GrainCorp oils division general manager Sam Tainsh said the amount of canola oil used in the formula’s vegetable oil blend varied “from nothing to about one third in any given product”.
He wants to see more locally grown canola oil used in the formulas.
“Milk formula is an area we see as an opportunity,” he said.
He said GrainCorp was upgrading its Numurkah site so it can process food-grade oil. This will be in addition to its Footscray site and give the company the capacity to produce more high-quality food oil.
“When it’s fully upgraded it (the canola) will be processed to food-grade oil,” he said.
Other producers Fonterra and A2 did not return calls before deadline.