Why is beer, milk, and practically every beverage out there cheaper than formula ?
Shouldn't it be cheaper than everything else since nourishing a baby is more important than anything else ?
2007-11-14 14:45:25 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Newborn & Baby
i saw you answer on the last question and i agree with you... why are so many things that are bad or unnecessary for you cheaper then things that you most have in life. i dont get it
2007-11-14 14:50:09 · answer #1 · answered by Veronica's Mommy 6 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Because men drink beer and they vote, they earn and spend money, and they make up the majority of the people who run the beer or formula companies.
Babies don't vote, don't earn or spend money (although they cost a lot) and they don't have any say in the running of beer or formula companies. If they did, they would probably make formula free and beer really expensive.
Why should something (nourishing our babies) be cheap just because it is important? If anything, the opposite should be true. If something is important it has more value so it would be more expensive. If it is an unimportant or un-necessary item it can be as cheap as you like because it has less value.
2007-11-16 11:34:59 · answer #2 · answered by Cathy T 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Formula is useless in my house and in most houses. Even devoted bottle feeding families only need formula for one year per child. That's not much, and the shelf life is limited. Beer, however, can be found in lots of houses!
Or, let's consider the issue from an environmental standpoint. Formula is very resource intensive. Cows take a lot of food, water and labor to raise. They have to be milked, then the milk has to be transported. It has to be processed and enriched, then packaged, distributed, sold at a store that gives away lots of plastic bags and driven home. In the factory, engineers are always being hired to improve the chemical makeup or the manufacturing process, and constant testing is mandatory. Of course it's expensive! You've outsourced a lot of work!
Finally, from a supply and demand perspective, it makes sense for formula to be expensive. Once you've made the decision to use formula, then you need it. Period. Plus, the government is buying most of the formula in the US, so the formula companies can set the price very high! It's like asking why gasoline is so expensive now. Because we'll pay that much for it, that's why.
Rachel W--many people live without those things. I can make my own diapers, I breastfeed instead of using formula, I rarely use a tampon. Condoms I could stand to use more often, but I get by without by looking at the calendar. Seriously, those things are easy to live without if you learn how.
2007-11-14 23:12:58 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 1⤋
Hmm.. Good point! I never really thought of it that way. I mean luckily there's the WIC program for people who can't afford formula. But I'm one of those people who make too much to qualify for WIC but not enough where buying formula doesn't put a big dent in my budget (I have to use formula for medical reasons). Also if you look at the ingrediants in formula there's nothing in there that's not found in other processed foods except the DHA and ARA. I wonder how much it costs the formula company's to actual make the stuff... I suspect they're making a hefty profit because it's an in demand product.
2007-11-14 22:57:14 · answer #4 · answered by Alexa's Mom 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Because beer is less processed than formula. Formula is optional, you don't have to buy it.
Honestly, it doesn't have to be free because it's a product, not a right.
If you are truly concerned about the price of formula, then you try harder to breastfeed, exhaust every chance. Formula is expensive and unnecessary since as a woman you make milk for free.
2007-11-15 03:51:46 · answer #5 · answered by maegs33 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Because you can get formula for FREE thru WIC...the guidelines aren't as strict like they are for welfare/ foodstamps.
As for milk...you can get that free as well...BUT I still think that the price is ridiculous!!! I could buy a cow cheaper than buying a gallon of milk.
And because you *have* to buy formula...you don't have to buy beer. (strictly speaking...some women can 't breastfeed)
2007-11-14 22:53:33 · answer #6 · answered by Miss Sunshine 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
some are making good points. theirs more nutritinal value in formula than beer. BUT if money is an issue. Breastmilk HAS always and will always be FREE.
2007-11-15 01:07:16 · answer #7 · answered by cowsfreak 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Because beer is what made some people have children in the first place!!! It's a set-up! They reel you in to get more money.
2007-11-14 23:45:51 · answer #8 · answered by Bella H 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
It's all about supply and demand. Companys know that formula is a must for most people, so they jack up the prices, knowing that youll buy it.
2007-11-14 23:28:54 · answer #9 · answered by nicolemorales 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Good point. Maybe they expect you to feed your baby beer? That wouldn't be too good........
Anyway, I agree. If children are the future, we should be able to pay a reasonable amount of money to feed them!
2007-11-14 22:49:33 · answer #10 · answered by kat 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋