Breast milk for sale might sound a bit odd, but milk sharing actually dates back many centuries. You’ve probably heard of wet nurses — women hired and paid specifically to breastfeed infants when their mom wasn’t able to or didn’t want to breastfeed. If you have more milk than your baby can drink or if you want to feed your baby breast milk but cannot make it on your own, the milk-buying and selling process is your answer.
How Do You Sell Breast Milk?
A few private milk banks pay for breast milk. However, don’t expect to make big bucks. You might choose to view the compensation as a bonus to the fact that you’re also providing nutritious food for other women’s babies. Only private milk banks pay you. The amount varies. International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) Debbie Page, creator of Visiting Lactation Consultants and The New Born Baby, says the compensation is “typically between $1 and $2.50 per ounce.”
Expect to be screened if you want to sell your breast milk, says Betty Greenman, an IBCLC and founder of Breastfeeding With Love. Buyers of breast milk want assurance that you’re healthy and free of communicable diseases, such as HIV and syphilis, and most buyers will ask for a complete health history before purchasing milk from you. You’ll also need to discuss how you’ll get the milk to them. Usually, you freeze it in breast milk bags and ship or deliver it in a cooler.
Who Gets the Milk?
Many moms of critically ill infants or premature babies buy breast milk to ensure that their babies get the nutrients they need to overcome their illnesses. Some moms who cannot make enough breast milk on their own will also buy breast milk if they feel strongly that breast milk is what’s best for their infants. Women often sell their excess breast milk as a way to help babies in need.
Buying Breast Milk
Page suggests you interview a few sellers and then “choose the best fit for you.” This ensures that you learn health histories and can get a feel to see if their lifestyle is compatible with yours.
Breast milk buying and selling websites take precautions to reduce the risk of buying contaminated breast milk. If you opt to buy breast milk from a private milk-sharing company, do your homework. Buy milk that comes from someone who has provided a complete and recent health history. If the milk hasn’t been screened or pasteurized, it poses a health risk to your baby. Screening the women selling the breast milk can help reduce this risk.
How Do You Get Started?
Before purchasing breast milk, speak to your child’s pediatrician to see if that’s the right solution for your situation. If your baby has a medical condition that requires human milk, “you need a medical prescription from your baby’s doctor,” Greenman notes. If the idea of buying or selling breast milk for sale intrigues you, get in touch with a lactation consultant or a milk bank, such as Mother’s Milk Cooperative in Eugene, Oregon, or a breast milk network such as Only the Breast to inquire. In the end, milk sharing is one way moms can support each other in providing for the health of their babies.
If you are a new mother looking for extra assistance with your newborn, consider finding a doula on Care.com.
Sara Ipatenco is an elementary school teacher turned stay-at-home mom and freelance writer. Ipatenco holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree, both in child development and elementary education. She has been published in “Teaching Tolerance” and “Family Fun” magazines.
