Invention of Infant Milk Formula

Long before the invention of infant formula, milk substitutes were given to babies in the form of animal milk or human milk from someone other than the mother. However, as sanitation needs gained recognition, commercially manufactured products were introduced to improve infant health.

First Formula

• The first commercial infant formula was introduced in 1867; Liebig's formula was made of wheat flour, cow's milk, malt flour and potassium bicarbonate.

Powdered Formula

• The first powdered formula was introduced in 1915, containing nonfat cow's milk, lactose, oleo oils and vegetable oils.

Soy Formula

• In 1929 soy-based formulas were introduced, becoming the first non-animal-based formulas available.

Additives

• Over the decades, various ingredients have been added to commercial formulas to make them more nutritious, including protein in 1935, iron in 1959 and taurine in 1984.

Whey Proteins

• With the recognition that human milk contains far more whey proteins than cow's milk, whey-predominant formulas became the most widely used milk-based formulas by 2000.