Calgary Mothers Milk Bank to begin screening moms for donation in December, 2011

CBC Radio interview with Calgary Mothers Milk Bank head Jannette Festival

CBC Radio recently interviewed Jannette Festival, executive director of the soon-to-open Calgary Mothers Milk Bank, which plans to begin screening moms December 1st. They hope to have their pasteurizer up and running in January. Calgary hasn't had a milk bank since the early '80s.

Festival says project was spurred by the updated statement from the Canadian Paediatric Society in the fall of 2010 calling for a network of milk banks to be opened across the country to provide pasteurized donor milk is the impetus for the project. She says they have a financial donor who has provided funding for the first year of operation for the mik bank.

Festival says her ultimate goal is to see breastfeeding rates increase because people are more aware of the value of human milk - the bank will validate how important human milk is. For year one they are hoping to collect and process 40,000 ounces. She refers to milk as "a scare commodity...if we get 40,000 we'll need 80,000 if we get 80,000 we'll need 120,000...we want to supply it to all babies who need it across the province." Festival is sure the demand will be there, citing the shortage of human milk in the US noting the Austin milk bank pasteurized 300,000 ounces last year and is short, and the San Jose milk bank produced 500,000 ounces and "they just don't have enough."