Hong Kong’s new breast milk ‘bank’ could help save the lives of struggling newborns

Hong Kong Free Press

Hong Kong mother Yoyo Chan carries a large white backpack every day. Inside are two sets of portable breast pumps, a nursing cover, storage bags, alcohol spray, and other items she needs to express breast milk every four hours.

Hong Kong mother Yoyo Chan uses breast pumps at home. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

The milk is not only for her eight-month-old daughter but also for the city’s first breast milk bank, located at the Hong Kong Children’s Hospital, which began service on Monday.

The 38-year-old mother became one of the first donors to the breast milk bank, which focuses on supporting premature or critically ill newborns. So far, she has donated around 10 200-millilitre packs of frozen breast milk.

Rosanna Wong, the director of the bank, told a press conference on Tuesday that mothers of high-risk babies often faced challenges with lactation and breastfeeding. The milk bank could provide safe, high-quality donated breast milk to these infants, potentially saving their lives, the doctor said.

Before Chan gave birth to her daughter last April, she had suffered two miscarriages, which deepened her sympathy for mothers of premature and critically ill infants. When her obstetrician told her about the upcoming launch of the breast milk bank, she was determined to become a donor.

Hong Kong Breast Milk Bank Director Rosanna Wong (left) presents a certificate to donor Yoyo Chan (middle) on January 7, 2025. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

“It was no easy feat for these babies to make it into this world. I really wanted to help them absorb better [nutrients] and grow up healthily,” Chan said in Cantonese at the press conference.

The breast milk bank is primarily for infants born after less than 32 weeks or those weighing under 1.5 kilograms at birth, as their digestive systems may not be fully developed. Wong explained that breast milk was easier for these infants to digest and absorb than formula, and it contained higher levels of antibodies and bioactive factors that support their growth and development.

Infants who have undergone intestinal surgery or those with congenital heart diseases are also classified as high-risk and in need of breast milk. It can significantly reduce the risk of serious complications, such as necrotising enterocolitis, a severe intestinal condition, the doctor said.

The breast milk bank, managed by the Hospital Authority, officially launched its first phase of service on Monday, focusing on recruiting donors and collecting donated milk. Wong said it has already received over 100 inquiries from potential donors.

Medical staff at the Hong Kong Breast Milk Bank. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

The next phase is set to begin in March, when the breast milk bank will distribute milk to nine public hospitals with neonatal intensive care units. Doctors will prescribe the breast milk for infants, with approval from their parents.

“We hope to collect 1,000 litres of breast milk every year. We estimated that 450 to 600 infants can benefit. Of course, we welcome more,” Wong said, adding that around 150 to 200 donors are needed each year to meet the target.

Donors must be breastfeeding an infant under the age of one. They must also meet health criteria, including not smoking, using illegal drugs, or consuming more than 200 milligrams of caffeine per day. Alcohol intake should be limited, and donors following a vegetarian or vegan diet must take a vitamin B12 supplement.

Regular donors must undergo blood tests every three months to screen for hepatitis B and C, AIDS, syphilis, and other transmissible diseases.

A storage box for transporting breast milk from a donor's home back to the Hong Kong Breast Milk Bank. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. — A storage box for transporting breast milk from a donor’s home back to the Hong Kong Breast Milk Bank. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

The breast milk bank only accepts milk that has been collected within the past 10 weeks. Once a donor has expressed about two litres of breast milk, which should be frozen and stored separately from food, they can contact the bank for collection.

Designated delivery services will be available to pick up breast milk from the donor’s home and transport it back to the bank, where it will be stored at -20 degrees Celsius. Once defrosted, staff will combine the breast milk from the same donor and repackage it into bottles. Each bottle will be sealed before undergoing disinfection.

Medical staff will test the milk for microorganisms and conduct a nutritional analysis to ensure its safety and quality.

The freezer at Chan’s home is stocked with breast milk packs, carefully labelled to indicate the expiry date. She told HKFP in an interview on Wednesday that she had had to ask visiting friends and family not to bring food or her freezer might “explode.”

Breast milk stored in the freezer at Yoyo Chan's home. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. — Breast milk stored in the freezer at Yoyo Chan’s home. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

Now that her daughter has begun consuming liquid foods, Chan has more spare breast milk available for donation. The church worker said she has encouraged other mothers to breastfeed and consider donating any excess milk to the bank. But the general atmosphere in Hong Kong was “not very friendly” towards breastfeeding mothers, she said.

Milk bags, used to store breast milk, are hard to come by in the city, prompting Chan to rely on friends to buy them at lower prices from Taiwan and Japan. The quality of nursing rooms in Hong Kong also varies significantly; some are so small that they cannot accommodate a stroller, while others combine the nursing area and diaper changing facilities in the same room, leading to long wait times.

What frustrates Chan the most is the reaction of those around her when she expresses milk in public while using a nursing cover. She has been asked to stop, as some people it inappropriate.

Yoyo Chan and her daughter. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

“I don’t really care what others think, because I think that what I’m doing doesn’t affect others. If it were my friends, I would tell them that it’s not just for my daughter to eat, it’s for other babies too,” she said.

In less than four months, Chan will no longer be able to donate her breast milk, as donations should cease once the donor’s baby reaches one year of age. She will make the most of the remaining months, hoping to set an example for her daughter about the importance of sharing.

“I really want [my daughter] to know that what goes around comes around. If you can become someone who gives, God will give you more. This is something I want her to learn from a young age,” she said.

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