Drug giant takes up A2 milk questions

By Deborah Hill Cone

Friday 29th November 2002

Drug giant Bristol-Myers Squibb's nutrition subsidiary Mead Johnson was yesterday demanding answers from dairy company Fonterra over the A1 milk scandal.

A brief statement supplied from Mead Johnson in the US said it was asking questions about research showing its infant formula Pregestimil has high levels of peptide beta-casomorphin-7 (MCM-7).

BCM-7, a peptide release on the digestion of cow's milk, has been linked to the occurrence of some health disorders including diabetes and autism.

At first BCM-7 was believed to be produced on digestion of all cow's milk but later was shown by both German and New Zealand researchers to be released only by milk with the A1 protein not A2 type protein.

A confidential Fonterra memo said Fonterra research had shown that Pregestimil, a hypoallergenic formula targeted for babies and children with dairy intolerance, was shown to produce a high level of diabetes in rats in the Food & Diabetes trial, carried out by Professor Bob Elliott.

"[Fonterra] has since shown that Pregestimil contains a high amount of BCM-7. This result is not known outside the New Zealand dairy industry and forms the basis of a confidential NZDRI [New Zealand Dairy Research Institute, since renamed Fonterra Research Centre] report," scientist Jeremy Hill wrote in the October 2000 Fonterra memo.

Mead Johnson is asking for answers, given Pregestimil is promoted as being less likely to cause diabetes as it is for children with a dairy intolerance.

A statement from Mead Johnson's Indiana head office said it had not seen data on the BCM-7 issue but had asked for it from Fonterra.

"We do not know of any scientific data or published studies relating to BCM-7. Any links between BCM-7 and health risks are highly speculative.

If we believed that there was any health risk associated with our product we would take action," Mead Johnson public affairs director Pete Paradossi said.

Asked whether Mead Johnson was concerned Fonterra had kept information about Pregestimil from it, Mr Paradossi said: "They are not obligated to inform us of any studies they might conduct. However, we are always interested in research involving our products."

Mr Paradossi said Mead Johnson was very familiar with the Food & Diabetes trial which shows Pregestimil lowers the risk of diabetes: "[But] regarding the separate issue of BCM-7 we have requested data from Fonterra."

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