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From February 2022, a baby box will be distributed to parents. The point on what it will look like and what it will contain.
The baby box: a Finnish model
It’s called the “baby box”, but it won’t be exactly one. Unlike its Finnish example, the French version will look more like a shoulder bag. Invented in 1938 in Finland, the “baby box” is a cardboard box equipped with a mattress. It is delivered to all future parents and contains everything needed for the first days of a baby.
The French version will not present itself as a box-bed since it has “it was not possible to reach a consensus about the safety of the child lying in a cardboard box” reports the cabinet of Adrien Taquet, Secretary of State for Children. In France, care is taken to ensure that thechild sleeps in a space where the air circulates properly so that the baby’s face is never obstructed by anything. So the smooth walls of the box seemed to be a problem.
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What will the baby box contain?
It will be a bag, to be worn over the shoulder, an invitation to parents to take a walk with their child.
Support for communicating public health prevention messages from first 1000 days of childthis bag will contain a booklet of educational advice and care for young parents, but also a sleeping bag (in neutral and gender-neutral colors) to encourage parents to put the baby to sleep in good safety conditions: without sheets, blankets, on back and in a sleeping bag.
A bib and a neutral soap will also be delivered in the box: they will serve as a support for prevention messages and advice aboutchild nutrition and the care that should be given to it.
In the bag, parents can also find a children’s album, to remind them that it is also important to take care of their awakening and stimulate their interest in reading and stories. “We eat with food, but also with culture, we wanted to get this message across” indicates the firm of Adrien Taquet.
“We are also going to offer a care cream for the mother, so that she can take time for herself. The main message is to inform him about the risks associated with postpartum depression” summarizes the ministry.
A tender will be launched for the products of the baby box
“For the moment, we do not know which brands will be involved in the project, but we will launch a call for tenders soon. We are going to launch a market reserved for French, social companies, which work with people in reintegration or with disabilities” warns the children’s secretariat.
The call for tenders will be launched for the coming days, the choice of companies collaborating in this project will be made by December 2021.
When and where will the baby box be delivered?
It is from February 2022 that the baby box will be delivered to parents. Unlike its Finnish model, it will not be worn at their home, but in maternity wards. First distributed in priority areas, “the system will then be extended to all of France by autumn 2022” informs the cabinet of Adrien Taquet.