The First International Nestlé Boycott: Noncooperation and the Battle Over Public Support

Dalilah A. Shemia-Goeke ()
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Dalilah A. Shemia-Goeke: Independent Researcher

Chapter Chapter 5 in People Power Strategies to Curtail Corporate Power, 2025, pp 103-141 from Springer

Abstract: Abstract This chapter examines the first international boycott of Nestlé, which lasted from 1977 to 1984, as a strategic case study in economic noncooperationnoncooperationeconomic. Prompted by concerns over Nestlé's aggressive marketing of infant formulaformula in impoverished regions, which often led to malnutrition and infant deaths, activists initiated a boycott to shift public opinionpublicopinion and influence corporate behaviour. Section 5.1 provides background on the case and the foundational events of the boycott. The section highlights the significant role of advocacyadvocacy groups and their leaders, whose efforts catalysed the boycott. Section 5.2 then analyses the dynamics of public supportpublicsupport mobilisation, exploring how the boycott gained momentum, Nestlé’s counterstrategies, and the activists’ adaptation in response. The chapter also considers the ways in which activists targeted Nestlé’s vulnerabilities and disrupted its strategystrategy and leveraged grassrootsgrassroots organising to create local pressurepressure. The campaign’s successsuccess in raising awareness and initiating international dialogue is underscored by major milestones, such as the endorsement of the World Health Organization (WHO) Code regulating marketing practices. However, the chapter concludes that while the boycott resulted in meaningful change, Nestlé and other corporations continue to resist full implementation of the WHO Code in some regions. The chapter closes with reflections on the limitations of the boycott, particularly its temporary impactimpact on Nestlé’s behaviour and its limited involvement of affected communitiesaffected communities in the Global SouthglobalSouth.

Keywords: Boycott; Nonviolent Action (NVA); Infant formula marketing; Economic noncooperation; Spectrum of supporters; Campaign strategies; Corporate counter-strategy; WHO code; Grassroots organising; Corporate social responsibility (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-99094-6_5

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