On August 1st at the "Breastfest 2002", Adelaide again held the Guinness Book of World Records for women breastfeeding simultaneously that was originally set in 1999 and broken in 2001 by Gosford, N.S.W with their count of 536. However, 2 days later, on August 3rd 2002, Berkeley in California announced that they had a count of 1136 making them the new world record holders!

At our action packed Adelaide event, 767 babies were counted breastfeeding after a hectic, frantic morning of trying to pack mothers, babies and their support people into 2 movie cinemas at Greater Union Marion Megaplex. Queues into the venue stretched way into the shopping complex and a sea of prams was a sight to behold.

Calling themselves the Breastfest radio station, Mix 102 had been heavily promoting the event in the weeks prior, providing information on their website and taking registrations online. They also provided a celebrity from their Breakfast Show as a host.

Posters and invitation flyers were distributed far and wide through the Australian Breastfeeding Association's local groups, other support agencies and anywhere we could think of putting them. At the beginning of the event, Australian Breastfeeding Association (ABA) member Corinna Paget who is totally blind, played guitar and sang a song that she wrote when her 1st child was born.

Breastfest 2002 also celebrated World Breastfeeding Week and officially launched the Breastfeeding in Public Project. The project aims to improve community acceptability of breastfeeding in public through the accreditation and promotion of breastfeeding friendly businesses. The new version of the "Breastfeeding Welcome Here" sticker and the supporting kit has been produced with funding from the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. ABA is working together with the University of Adelaide in promoting and distributing the sticker and kit for use by communities in Australia. A database of businesses / venues displaying the sticker or folder is being compiled via registration on the ABA website.

Have you seen the Breastfeeding in Public TV community service announcement that was released nationally during August? The ad, fondly known as "The Toilet Ad" was originally developed in Tasmania and is expected to be showing across all states.

To all the mothers and helpers who assisted to make the Adelaide "Breastfest 2002" an historical and fun event that promoted and supported breastfeeding, a huge thank you.

Soozie Bice & Rose Boyd
ABA counsellors