How ‘Big’ Infant Formula Giants Lobby Against Paid Maternity Leave

America’s falling birth rate has become a political priority for the Trump administration, which recently launched “Operation Stork Speed,” a package of tax credits, expanded parental benefits, and even a federal review of infant formula ingredients.

Yet the single policy most experts say would make the biggest difference — guaranteed paid maternity leave — has been blocked for decades by a powerful and largely hidden force: the infant formula industry. Companies like Abbott and Nestlé have poured millions into lobbying to prevent federal leave mandates, preserving a system that forces mothers back to work within weeks of childbirth and drives families toward formula out of necessity rather than choice.