Tesco Breaks Code

Email, phone, write letters.

The SMA Starter Pack (28 Clubcard Points)

The SMA gold is a nutritionally complete infant milk. It can be used as the first infant milk you should choose or to complement breast feeding. SMA gold can be added to older babies food. It is gluten free. Also available in cans of powder.

Formula advertising and promotion, pure and simple. Yes, it's to buy from their online service. No, it's not point of sale.

Statutory Instrument 1995 No. 77

The Infant Formula and Follow-on Formula Regulations 1995

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© Crown Copyright 1995

Restrictions on advertising of infant formulae
17.—(1) No person shall publish or display any advertisement for an infant formula—
(a) except—
(i) in a publication specialising in baby care and distributed only through the health care system;
(ii) in a scientific publication; or
(iii) for the purposes of trade prior to the retail stage, in a publication of which the intended readership is other than the general public; and
(b) which does not comply with the requirements, prohibitions and restrictions relating to labelling contained in regulations 13(1)(h), (2) and (3) and 15.

(2) An advertisement for an infant formula shall contain only information of a scientific and factual nature. Such information shall not imply or seek to create a belief that bottle-feeding is equivalent or superior to breast-feeding.

And.. they are offering double reward points. Again, completely against Code.

Restrictions on promotion of infant formulae
19. No person shall at any place where any infant formula is sold by retail—
(a) advertise any infant formula;
(b) make any special display of an infant formula designed to promote sales;
(c) give away—
(i) any infant formula as a free sample; or
(ii) any coupon which may be used to purchase an infant formula at a discount;
(d) promote the sale of an infant formula by means of premiums, special sales, loss- leaders or tie-in sales; or
(e) undertake any other promotional activity to induce the sale of an infant formula.

20. No manufacturer or distributor of any infant formula shall provide for promotional purposes any infant formula free or at a reduced or discounted price, or any gift designed to promote the sale of an infant formula, to—
(a) the general public;
(b) pregnant women;
(c) mothers; or
(d) members of the families of persons mentioned in sub-paragraphs (b) and (c) above,
either directly, or indirectly through the health care system or health workers.

TESCO DIRECT: If you need to speak to someone, please contact us on 0845 6004411**, 8am to 11pm Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm on Saturday and 10am to 6pm on Sunday

PO Box 73
Baird Avenue
Dryburgh Industrial Estate
Dundee
DD1 9NF

tescodirect@tesco.co.uk

I'll try and find a person in authority phone number tomorrow.

Complaints about website advertising and promotion are processed by Trading Standards, not the Advertising Standards Authority. However, the ASA will do the promotions part of the code breaking, so you need to complain to both.

Trading Standards - put your postcode into the Consumer Direct box at base of page. Complaint against breech Clause 17 of Infant and Follow on Formula Regulations, 1995.

ASA: Go Through the complaints form citing the double rewards points breaking Clause 19 & 20.

EDIT: When phoning Tesco Direct, they will claim it's 'Groceries' and not them, as they don't sell formula. Ask them to put "SMA Starter Pack" into their search engine, and it comes up under Tesco Direct. Young man I just spoke to ws well informed and knew form his training that reward points cannot be given for formula. So phone tonight!