Currently there is only one human milk bank in Canada, located in Vancouver, BC.
We would like to petition the government to show that there is public interest in re-opening a breast milk bank in Alberta, providing families and caregivers another option. After a careful screening process, mothers can pump and donate their milk. The milk is then processed and pasteurized.
The Canadian Pediatric Society released a statement in November of 2010 stating that pasteurized human milk should be the alternative for sick, hospitalized newborns if their own mother’s milk is not available before manufactured formula is used. (http://www.cps.ca/english/statements/N/N10-01.htm) The World Health Organization recommends that all infants should be exclusively fed breast milk for at least the first 6 months. If mother’s milk is not available, donor milk should be used before resorting to formula. (http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2003/9241562218.pdf)