What is the best European Baby Formula?

What is the Best European Baby Formula?

The best European-made baby formula generally depends on your specific needs, but Kendamil, HiPP, Aptamil, and Holle are the most popular and widely used brands in Europe and the UK for decades. They are heavily regulated by the EU and EFSA (European Food Safety Authority), which enforces stricter ingredient purity, pesticide and fertilizer limits, tough non-GMO requirements, and vigilant animal welfare practices. This is in stark contrast to the more lax policies of US agencies that regulate American baby formula. Also, while these formulas have some differences, they are all nutritionally complete breastmilk substitutes for each stage of development as required by European law.

Leading options tailored to different infant needs include:

• Best Whole Milk Formula: Kendamil UK is the only British infant formula, manufactured in the English Lake District. It uniquely uses full-cream whole cow's milk rather than skimmed milk, includes plant-based DHA (Omega-3) for brain development making it the only formula that is truly vegetarian. They also don't use palm oil and are Red Tractor certified; awarded for clean soil and farming practices. 

• Best Formula for Sensitive Stomachs: HiPP UK is 100% organic and has highly sustainable practices for soil, farming, natural plant-life, and animal welfare. They add natural prebiotics (GOS) and probiotics to support infant digestion which makes their formulas highly regarded for gassy, bloated, or sensitive babies.

• Best Researched and Combination Feeding Formula: Aptamil has over 50 years of research to create a formula that mimics breastmilk. It stands as an esteemed brand with various milk options that don't use palm oil and have a strong ingredient profile . For parents using formula to supplement breastmilk production, Aptamil is a great choice.

• Best Biodynamic / Goat Milk Formula: Holle (based in Germany/Switzerland) offers Demeter-certified biodynamic formulas which are a standard that exceeds European organic requirements. Their goat milk formula is excellent for infants who have difficulty digesting cow's milk.

There are several other European companies that offer standard or organic formulas but don't meet our strict criteria* to offer them to our US customers. The selected brands above were chosen because they are high quality, readily available formulas with decades of consistency, and long-standing presence in the British or European community. 

If you want to explore more: Best European and British Baby Formulas

 

 

*Criteria includes: 1) Consistent formula track history of 30 years or more, 2) traceable formula sourcing back to the manufacturer, 3) widely available, 4) limited or no formula recall history.