AQW 4118/22-27 Written question to the Minister of Health
To ask the Minister of Health to detail the volume of human milk donated in each of the last five years.
Asked by Claire Sugden MLA on 5 October 2022
- Answered
- Written
- Tabled
- 5 October 2022
- Answer due by
- 20 October 2022
- Answered
- 13 October 20228 days after tabling
- Department
- Department of Health
- Priority question
- No
Answer
Information on donations of human milk made in Northern Ireland is not held centrally within my Department. Western Health and Social Care Trust, which provides a milk bank service for neonatal and seriously ill babies to all five of the Health and Social Care Trusts, as well as some hospitals in the Republic of Ireland, was asked for input. The figures they provided are tabulated overleaf.
Human Donor Expressed Breast Milk (DEBM) received in litres from 2018 to date1
| Year | DEBM received (in litres) |
| 2018 | 378.472 |
| 2019 | 1136.0 |
| 2020 | 1315.2 |
| 2021 | 1919.7 |
| 2022 | 1284.8 |
Source: Women and Children’s Directorate, Western Health and Social Care Trust
12022 data is up until 2 October 2022 only.
2During 2018, operations in the facility were suspended because of the discovery of pseudomonas.