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A recent study in Switzerland revealed the country is just moderately ‘breastfeeding friendly’.
Nor is Switzerland alone. This is why, in keeping with the 2026 World Breastfeeding Week theme to ‘Strengthen What Works’, FLRF is reaffirming its commitment to support science-backed activities that strengthen breastfeeding knowledge and practices in Switzerland and around the world.
FLRF is proud to have been the sole funder of the Becoming Breastfeeding Friendly (BBF) study conducted by Switzerland’s ZHAW School of Health Sciences. The study assessed the readiness to scale breastfeeding programs and provided recommendations on how to improve the national breastfeeding environment. For example, develop a national breastfeeding strategy and action plan, increase political advocacy, and better integrate breastfeeding expertise into training for health professionals.
These recommendations offer multiple levers with actionable steps on what can be improved on the political and institutional level for Switzerland. They are also familiar – BBF studies in other countries funded by the Foundation showed similar results and underscore the importance of our work globally.
“The findings provide a valuable basis for positive change. They also show that Switzerland faces many of the same challenges as other countries. We see the recommendations as a constructive and encouraging way forward, and we sincerely thank the study team, the experts who assessed the evidence and developed the recommendations, and the professionals who shared their experiences through the interviews,” says Dr. Katharina Lichtner, PhD, Managing Director of FLRF. “They also lay the groundwork for Breastmilk for Life (BFL) which assess the biggest roadblocks for families to breastfeed successfully.”
Find study details and the full report here, in German.
Examples of FLRF projects that address real-world needs
Breastmilk for Life – Ghana
In Ghana, we worked with government and health leaders at the Ministry of Health and the Ubora Quality Institute to develop a systematic process to identify key breastfeeding roadblocks for mothers and their families and use that knowledge to develop a comprehensive, fully costed change plan for the country. Details, along with practical tools, templates, examples and implementation insights have been compiled in the Breastmilk for Life (BFL) Handbook & Toolkit, which will soon be freely available on LactaHub. It is intended to serve as a practical resource for organizations seeking to strengthen policies, systems, and programs that support breastfeeding.
Nourished Truth – South Africa
In South Africa, we created a standard process on how a country can develop a customized advocacy and engagement campaign to protect women’s breastfeeding choices from the influence of commercial milk formula marketing, with the University of the Western Cape and HEALA. The result is a campaign that addresses the specific issues in South Africa. At the same time the tested process is available, free of charge, in the Nourished Truth Operational Toolkit, a ‘how-to’ guide for building a protective breastfeeding environment.
Access it here on LactaHub.
Join a free webinar on 5 August, hosted by HEALA, to learn more about the Nourished Truth project and toolkit.
Breastfeeding in Humanitarian Crisis Settings
With The Centre for Global Child Health at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), FLRF is working to build efficient-to-implement standard operating procedures, specific to different types of crises, to strengthen support for breastfeeding mothers in humanitarian crisis settings. The aim is to utilize existing resources to help mothers displaced by natural or climate-change disasters or in armed conflict zones. Please stay tuned for updates.
LactaHub – A Resource for Evidence-based Breastfeeding Intelligence
LactaHub is a free breastfeeding knowledge platform. It offers evidence-based resources and tools to healthcare practitioners, policymakers, researchers, and other stakeholders in human milk and lactation. LactaHub is a partnership project of the Family Larsson-Rosenquist Foundation and The Global Health Network (University of Oxford).
These are just a few examples of how FLRF has committed itself to strengthening what works.
This World Breastfeeding Week, we thank partners and supporters alike for over a decade of science, knowledge, and working to translate the massive amount of evidence-based information into concrete projects and sustainable actions.
We look forward to continuing to build innovative, efficient pathways to a world where every child has an optimal start in life through the benefits of breastmilk.