Role
The MAIF Complaints Committee assesses complaints made against organisations who have signed the MAIF Agreement. The agreement is a voluntary code of conduct for manufacturers and importers of infant formula in Australia. Signatories must not promote infant formula.
The committee has developed guidance documents and provides advice to the Australian Government on interpreting and applying the agreement.
Read the committee’s terms of reference.
Members
| Member | Background and experience | Declarations of interest |
|---|---|---|
| Kellie Wilton – Independent representative (Chair) | Midwifery Advisor to the Department of Health and Aged Care Chief Nursing and Midwifery Officer. | Former employment at the Australian College of Midwives managing the Baby Friendly Health Initiative (BFHI) program. Declared August 2024 |
| Jane Scott – Public health representative | Former Deputy Head of the School of Public Health at Curtin University. | Recipient of an Australian Government Department of Health, Child and Youth health grant to trial ‘Milk Man’, a breastfeeding app for fathers from rural and remote Western Australia. Co-investigator on a National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Project Grant led by the University of Queensland. Chair of the recently formed Australian Breastfeeding Association WHO Code Taskforce. Declared October 2021 |
| Jonathan Chew – Industry representative | Infant Nutrition Council (INC) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) | INC CEO Declared August 2024 |
| Jacky Mandelbaum – Independent representative | Alfred Health – Senior Legal Counsel | Nil Declared January 2025 |
Meetings
The committee meets once per quarter, meeting dates for 2025 are as follows:
- 27 February 2025
- 21 May 2025
- 20 August 2025
- 19 November 2025.
Making a complaint
If you believe a company has breached the MAIF Agreement contact the company in the first instance, as they might work on a solution.
If you are not satisfied with the company’s response:
- complete the complaint form (send a separate form for each complaint)
- email or post it to the secretariat.
See our guidance documents for help understanding the MAIF Agreement.
Assessment process
The secretariat registers all complaints received and sends them to the committee.
The committee:
- reviews the complaint to determine whether it is in scope
- advises companies of complaints received
- invites the company to give a formal response within 4 weeks
- assesses the response
- advises both the company and complainant of the final decision
- publishes a high-level summary of the outcome.
See a flowchart of the complaints handling process.
If the outcome is out of scope, the committee advises the complainant of the finding and takes no further action.
Complaints
Complaints dashboard
Active complaints undergoing the formal complaints process.
| Complaint reference | Date received | Incident date | Complaint summary | Status | Target meeting date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2425-08 | 11 December 2024 | 11 September 2024 | Alleged breach of clause 5(a) relating to a sponsored advertisement on a third-party Facebook page promoting the company’s toddler milk product, with wording in the caption “is available in three stages suitable from newborn to 4 years. | In Progress Company response requested | 27 February 2025 |
| 2425-09 | 11 December 2024 | 12 September 2024 | Alleged breach of clause 5(a) relating to a sponsored advertisement on a third-party Facebook page promoting the company’s toddler milk product, with wording in the caption “is available in three stages suitable from newborn to 4 years.” | In Progress Company response requested | 27 February 2025 |
| 2425-10 | 11 December 2024 | 1 May 2024 | Alleged breach of clause 5(a) relating to a social media post of a mother sharing her morning routine with her family, including baby who is less than 12months old. The video includes the mother making formula prior to waking baby. | In Progress Company response requested | 27 February 2025 |
| 2425-11 | 11 December 2024 | 4 May 2024 | Alleged breach of clause 5(a), 5(c), 10(a) relating to a social media post on a mother’s personal page. The post states that it is a paid partnership with the company and provides a discount code to use when purchasing the products. The video also includes images of infant formula tin, mother making a bottle of infant formula, images of a mother and infant breastfeeding and baby drinking from a bottle. | In Progress Company response requested | 27 February 2025 |
| 2425-12 | 11 December 2024 | 27 July 2024 | Alleged breach of clause 5(a), 10 (a) in relation to a social media post on the company’s page of a testimonial video from a mother who is holding a tin of follow-on formula. The video ends with the wording “all stages now available online”. | In Progress Company response requested | 27 February 2025 |
| 2425-13 | 11 December 2024 | 1 October 2024 | Alleged breach of clause 5(a), 10(a) in relation to a video posted to the company’s social media page of an expectant mother packing her hospital bag and including a tin of formula in the bag in case her breastfeeding journey does not go to plan. | In Progress Company response requested | 27 February 2025 |
Complaint outcomes
The committee publishes all outcomes:
- on this page for the current financial year
- complaint outcomes list for previous financial years
- in annual reports for previous financial years.
This table displays complaints considered in the current financial year 2024–25:
| Complaint | Outcome |
|---|---|
2324-01 Received on the 21 September 2023, alleging a breach of clause 5 relating to promotion of a toddler milk product. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope. Toddler milk products are not in scope of the MAIF Agreement. |
2324-02 Bellamy’s Organic Received on the 23 September 2023 regarding a breach of clause 5(a) relating to a promotional banner at the FIFA World Cup, which was displayed in Chinese characters and translated in English to a promotion of infant formula. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it in breach of clause 5(a) of the MAIF Agreement due to the promotion of infant formula products to the public. |
2324-03 Sprout Organic Received on the 23 September 2023, regarding a breach of clause 5(a) relating to a Sprout Organic social media post promoting their crowdfunding campaign. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it in breach of clause 5(a) of the MAIF Agreement due to the promotion of infant formula products to the public through images of infant formula tins used in the campaign post. |
2324-04 Sprout Organic Received on the 12 October 2023 regarding a breach of clause 5(a) and 5(d) in relation to an email from Sprout Organic to their mailing list promoting their crowdfunding campaign which included images and linked an interview and an article. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it in breach of clause 5(a) of the MAIF Agreement due to the promotion of infant formula products to the public through images used in the campaign email. The committee determined no breach in relation to clause 5(d). |
2324-05 The LittleOak Company Received on the 12 October 2023 regarding the breach of clause 5(a) and alleged breach of 5(c), 5(d) in relation to a free event run by the The LittleOak Company for mothers with babies and young children. The event had a nutritionist speaker, ready to drink toddler milk and a ‘free goody bag for mum’. It also showcased the company’s full product range. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it in breach of clause 5(a) of the MAIF Agreement due to the promotion of infant formula products at the event and via social media posts related to the event. The committee determined clause 5(c) relating to the ’goody bag’ and 5(d) relating to the attendance of marketing personnel at the event to be In-scope but undetermined due to insufficient information. |
2324-06 The LittleOak Company Received on 12 October 2023 regarding a breach of clause 5(a) in relation to an ABC Radio Interview with the company CEO discussing The LittleOak Company’s new ready to drink goat milk infant formula product, the interview also contained comparisons of infant formula products to breastmilk. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it in breach of clause 5(a) of the MAIF Agreement due to the promotion of infant formula products to the public. |
2324-07 Bellamy’s Organic Received on 12 October 2023 regarding a breach of clause 5(a) in relation to three incidents that occurred at the FIFA World Cup; 1) the promotion of Bellamy’s Organic toddler milk product, 2) Bellamy’s Organic company signage displayed throughout the venue and 3) a promotional banner which was displayed in Chinese characters and translated in English to a promotion of infant formula. to a promotion of infant formula. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it in breach of clause 5(a) of the MAIF Agreement relating to incident three, due to the promotion of infant formula products to the public. The committee agreed incident one - toddler milk promotion and incident two - company signage was considered not a breach of the MAIF Agreement. |
2324-08 Received on 27 November 2023 and alleged breach of clause 5(a) in relation to Coles promoting an instore discount on an infant formula product. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it out of scope. Retailer activity is not included in the scope of the MAIF Agreement. |
2324-09 Received on 27 November 2023 and alleged breach of clause 5(a) in relation to the company signage promoting the company’s toddler milk product at the FIFA World Cup. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope. Toddler milk products are not in scope of the MAIF Agreement. |
2324-10 Received on 24 March 2024 and alleged breach of clause 5(a) in relation to the promotion of newborn formula and company branding at Perth Baby Expo. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope as the company is not a signatory. |
2324-11 Received on 8 April 2024 and alleged breach of clause 4(a)(i-v), 5(a), 5(d), 8(b) in relation to promotion of company branding and a presentation promoting infant formula at the Sydney Baby Expo. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope as the company is not a signatory. |
2324-12 Received on 8 April 2024 and alleged breach of clause 4(a)(i-v), 5(a), 5(d), 8(b) in relation to promotion of company branding and a presentation promoting infant formula at the Melbourne Baby Expo. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope as the company is not a signatory. |
2425-01 Received on 1 July 2024 and alleged a breach of clause 4(a), 5(a) in relation the use of images of infants when advertising the company’s toddler milk and the use of the word ‘babies'. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope as the company is not a signatory. |
2425-02 Sanulac Nutritionals Australia Received on 1 July 2024 regarding a breach of clause 5(a) in relation to a Coles sponsored advertisement on Facebook for the company’s toddler formula product promoting it as ‘food for happy, healthy babies’. The complaint contained four parts:
| The committee considered this complaint out of session in December 2024 and determined it in breach of clause 5(a) of the MAIF Agreement in relation to parts 1 & 2 due to the promotion of infant formula to the public through the use of the word ‘babies’. The committee agreed parts 3 & 4 are out of scope as toddler milk products are not in scope of the MAIF Agreement. |
2425-03 Received on 14 July 2024 and alleged a breach of clause 5(a) in relation to a discount on infant formula products on a third-party retailer website. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it out of scope. Retailer activity is not included in the scope of the MAIF Agreement. |
2425-04 Received on 14 July 2024 and alleged a breach of clause 5(a) in relation to a discount on infant formula products on a third-party retailer website. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it out of scope. Retailer activity is not included in the scope of the MAIF Agreement. |
2425-05 Received on 1 August 2024 and alleged a breach of clauses 5(a) in relation to a Woolworths in-store advertisement of a toddler milk product. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope. Toddler milk products and retailer activity are not in scope of the MAIF Agreement. |
2425-06 Received on 1 August 2024 and alleged a breach of clause 5(a) in relation to social media post advertising the company product range using the wording ‘infant formula’. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined that it was out of scope as the company is not a signatory. |
2425-07 Received on 24 September 2024 and alleged a breach of clause 7(a) in relation to a company sales representative attending a maternity facility and contacting hospital staff via email. | The committee considered this complaint on the 13 November 2024 and determined it not a breach of clause 7(a) of the MAIF Agreement. The committee found the contents of the email sent to hospital staff to be factual information that is permitted under clause 7(a). |
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