The International Baby Food Action Network (IBFAN) has called on UNESCO to end its education collaboration with Nestlé, saying the partnership risks giving commercial influence a place in public learning.
The programme — the UNESCO × Nestlé Global Youth Grant Scheme, known as Youth Impact — promotes youth projects in environmental sustainability and climate action. The award ceremony, scheduled for September 18 in Paris, was called off, reportedly because of transport strikes.
IBFAN said the collaboration undermines UNESCO’s principle that education must stay free from private or political control. It argued that the deal gives Nestlé a “halo effect,” helping improve its image while the company faces ongoing criticism over food marketing and environmental practices.
The group has monitored Nestlé’s activities for over forty years and previously pressed UN bodies to end financial ties with the company. It cited concerns ranging from infant-formula marketing and packaging waste to deforestation and labour rights.
According to IBFAN, between 50 and 70 percent of Nestlé’s 2,000 brands are considered unhealthy under independent assessments. Earlier this year, shareholders rejected a proposal urging the company to move faster in reformulating its products.
Nestlé is also under investigation in France for alleged illegal waste disposal and plastic pollution linked to its bottled-water business. The company reportedly paid a €2 million fine related to earlier violations to avoid further legal action.
UNESCO and Nestlé launched the Youth Impact scheme to fund small sustainability projects by young people worldwide. IBFAN said the initiative’s framing of climate education around a corporate brand creates confusion between learning and marketing.
The advocacy group confirmed it will meet UNESCO officials soon to raise its concerns directly. Neither UNESCO nor Nestlé has yet issued a formal comment on IBFAN’s statement.
