The Minnesota Milk Bank for Babies collaborated with local Muslim leaders and scholars, Children’s Minnesota and M Health Fairview neonatologists, Minnesota Breastfeeding Coalition members, and Brighter Health Minnesota community health leaders, to foster a dialogue leading to the first US fatwa (a formal ruling or interpretation of Islamic law) supporting the use of pasteurized donor human milk for Muslim babies. This initiative was developed to address a health disparity seen in hospital NICUs and to ensure that all premature infants have access to the best nutrition available.
