Noto Peninsula Earthquake: “Liquid milk” attracts growing interest January 25th, 18:04

The Noto Peninsula earthquake forced many people to evacuate.

Families with babies are often concerned about hygiene, and there is growing interest in ``liquid milk,'' which can be fed directly to babies without the need for hot water or water.

A reporter who is raising a one-year-old child covered the current situation surrounding liquid milk.

Lastly, we will also introduce how to give liquid milk in the event of a disaster, as taught by the manufacturer.

(Economy Department reporter Yumie Sano)

Providing liquid milk to disaster-stricken areas

When you think of milk for babies, the first thing that comes to mind for many people may be powdered milk.

However, before giving powdered milk to your baby, you need to sterilize the bottle, add the measured amount of powder, dissolve it in hot or cold water, and let it cool to human body temperature.

The reality is that it is difficult to carry out such work in disaster-stricken areas where water supply continues to be cut off.

On the other hand, when breastfeeding, you need to be careful about where you breastfeed, such as in evacuation centers.

Under these circumstances, there is growing interest in ``liquid milk,'' which requires a clean baby bottle, but can be fed to a baby at room temperature once the seal is opened, such as a can or pack.

This is liquid milk delivered to Nanao City, Ishikawa Prefecture.

Following the Noto Peninsula Earthquake, manufacturers provided liquid milk to evacuation centers and other locations in response to requests from the affected areas, and to date, approximately 30,000 bottles of liquid milk have been provided.

The manufacturer says it has received feedback from people affected by the disaster, such as, ``It's useful because it can be used even when the water is out.''

In addition, in response to the recent earthquake, there has been a growing need to stockpile liquid milk at home, even outside the disaster-stricken areas, and manufacturers are taking steps to respond.

"Meiji" has increased the number of production days since the beginning of January, as orders have been approximately double that of the previous month, and "Ezaki Glico" has also increased its shipment value in early January. Since the number of sales has increased by more than double from the previous year, the company is moving forward with its production plan.

How to increase shelf life of liquid milk

Liquid milk that can be given to babies at room temperature.

How do you improve shelf life?

This time, I visited the Meiji factory in Isesaki City, Gunma Prefecture for reporting.

To avoid bringing in germs from outside, we put on hairnets and lab coats, washed and disinfected our hands, and removed any fine dust from our clothes before being allowed inside the manufacturing site.

In the production process, raw materials such as lactose are first dissolved in hot water, then filled into cans and capped.

The capped cans are sterilized by heat treatment as they flow through the factory line, and are completed.

The company says it has been able to increase shelf life by sterilizing the product after placing it in sturdy steel cans.

The process differs depending on the company, but liquid milk sold in Japan can be stored for 9 months to 1.5 years.

The trigger was the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Kumamoto Earthquake.

Liquid milk that eliminates the need to make it every time you breastfeed.

It became widely known in Japan after disasters such as the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Kumamoto Earthquake.

At the time, manufacturing and sales in Japan were not allowed, but they were sent as relief supplies from overseas to disaster-stricken areas where water supply was cut off, and their high level of convenience attracted attention.

In addition to its necessity in times of disaster, its ease of use has led to growing calls for commercialization from households where both parents work, and in August 2018, domestic manufacturing and sales were lifted.

After that, dairy manufacturers released products one after another.

Although the stockpiling rate is gradually increasing...

It has been over five years since the ban on manufacturing and selling liquid milk was lifted in Japan.

Because it is more expensive than powdered milk, it is thought that only a limited number of households use it on a daily basis, but local governments around the world are gradually stockpiling it in preparation for disasters.

According to a survey conducted by manufacturers and other organizations targeting 1,741 local governments nationwide from June to July last year, nearly half, or 47.5%, responded that they purchased liquid milk themselves and stocked it.

In addition to this, including municipalities that have agreements with manufacturers and retailers to provide liquid milk in the event of a disaster, 72% of the total have liquid milk available in the event of a disaster.

On the other hand, what are the challenges for the remaining local governments when it comes to stockpiling?

In the survey, many respondents cited short expiration dates compared to other stocked items.

Compared to other stockpiled items, which can often be stored for multiple years, liquid milk is more likely to be thrown away after its expiration date, which suggests that people are reluctant to stockpile it.

Another challenge, according to manufacturers, is that liquid milk requires more storage space than powdered milk.

Regarding the issue of best-before dates, many local governments that have started stockpiling items that are close to their expiration dates do not throw them away, but instead use them effectively by distributing them to desired facilities and organizations, and instead stockpile new items. This means that we are responding.

In addition, the manufacturer hopes that instead of stockpiling all liquid milk, they will also stockpile powdered milk to help solve the problem.

Hideaki Ebara, Marketing Manager for Meiji Infant Milk

: ``When it comes to stockpiling, storage space and budget are limited, so I think it would be difficult to use liquid milk for everything. I would like to see the stockpiling rate steadily increase by stockpiling powdered milk and using it differently."

An opportunity to reconsider your daily preparations

This earthquake made us think once again about the need to be prepared on a daily basis, as roads were cut off and people remained isolated, and water supply was cut off for an extended period of time.

I personally learned about the existence of liquid milk for the first time after my child was born, and I keep it in my emergency backpack.

It is important for local governments to stockpile supplies, but each household has different needs, so each household should think about what kind of situation they can expect and what they need to have on hand in the event of a disaster. I felt it was necessary to keep it.

How to give liquid milk during a disaster

In this interview, we asked a manufacturer's representative to explain how to feed liquid milk to infants when it is not possible to clean or sterilize the bottles in the event of a disaster.

Use a disposable paper cup and feed your baby as follows:

[1] Pour milk to half the height of the cup

[2] Wrap the baby in a cloth or towel

[3] Place the bib under the chin

[4] Hold the baby

[5] Place the cup against the baby's lower lip

[6] tilt the cup slowly

Unlike a baby bottle, there is a risk that a large amount of milk may flow into the milk, so the trick is to feed the milk as if it were wetting the baby's lips, rather than "feeding" it.

If you have disposable paper cups, you can use a new one each time, so you can give your baby milk in a clean state.

However, he said that leftover drinks can easily breed bacteria, so please don't let them drink it and throw it away.

Yumie Sano,

Economic Affairs reporter,

worked at the Aomori Bureau and Mutsu Branch, and is

now at the current agency.She is raising a 1-year-old boy.