Bellamy's vs Hipp Organic Formulas

I have not been able to find any useful comparisons between the two so here you go:

Bellamy's Organic Infant Formula (1 - from birth)

- Available in Cold Storage for around SGD50 per can of 900g (can be out of stock so give yourself plenty of time to get a can in advance before you need it)
- It says "Made in Australia from Imported and Australian Ingredients"
- NASAA Certified Organic (but as someone mentioned, they don't specify which of the ingredients are imported)
- Whey dominant, iron enriched, gluten-free

personal opinion: I have used this on my little one from around 3 months as a supplement to breastfeeding. He took it well and he has had no problems with it. The only problem I have with it is that when shaken, it produces quite a lot of foam which some claim it makes babies 'gassy' (I have not found this to be a problem for my little one). Easy instructions to follow.

Hipp Infant Milk BIO (1 - from birth onwards)

- Can get them at Four Seasons Organic Store, B2, Great World City - around SGD14 per box of 300g (which makes is marginally cheaper than Bellamy's if you compare the price at 900g)
- They don't seem to yet stock the new one with added what they call 'prebiotics' to aid digestion and Omega 3 & 6 LCPs, available in the UK
- It seems like a UK brand but the company is registered in Austria and as such it follows European standards
GMO-free feed in accordance with EU Organic Directive
- It says "this organic product is being monitored by an independent organic control institute"

personal opinion: I have only started to try this since last week. The little one was a little confused at first and it seems thicker than Bellamy's which made it a little harder for the little one to suck it through the bottle. He was ok for a couple of feeds then he got really frustrated. It doesn't seem to melt all that well in room temperature water and it leaves little clumps of formula which sometimes blocks the hole. After 30 mins of struggling to get it all melted with vigorous shaking and poking through the hole with a toothpick whilst my little one threw a massive tantrum because he was hungry, I gave up and had to go out to get the Bellamy's one again. The other problems I have with it are on the practical level. It comes in a foil bag, in a box. I don't think this is necessarily more eco-friendly than a tin (which can also be recycled) as it comes in smaller amounts and therefore you go through more packaging. But I find it quite inconvenient to use and store and I found that it attracts ants if not carefully sealed in another plastic container. Plus I'm having to buy them more frequently. And finally, the instructions are a little difficult. I don't have time to make sure that the water is 50C and the measurement for water is in 5ml units (i.e. add 185ml of water) which is not how the bottles measure, therefore it is hard to be precise. Quite frankly, I don't have the time for this.

Comparing Nutrients

Not being an expert on this, I am not entirely sure how to compare the two but on face value, I have noted the following differences that may be significant:

Bellamy's - At first, I found it strange that it contains taurine. Yes, the core ingredient in energy drinks such as Red Bull. I was a little shocked about this and only just discovered it hence the change to Hipp. But having done a little more research, I have found that taurine is frequently used in formula to make it more like breastmilk (it is naturally occurring in breastmilk) and it's totally acceptable.

Here's a link to a scientific study on this:

http://www2.cochrane.org/reviews/en/ab006072.html

So no need to worry about it but thought to mention it just in case someone else thought the same.
Other than this, Bellamy's has 0.96mg of iron whereas Hipp has 0.5mg. Hipp also has flouride (5.4mg) which Bellamy's doesn't have at all. Hipp also has long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (which are more commonly known as omega 3, I think)
Bellamy's uses organic milk solids whereas Hipp uses organic skimmed milk.

Quite frankly, I couldn't tell you which is 'better' in terms of content - I've seen plenty of good reviews for both and the choice seems personal.

We mustn't forget that babies are little people and they will all be different in their preferences too!
My tiger baby seems to prefer Bellamy's so that seems to be the winning formula for us.

Disclaimer: I'm not an expert in infant formula nor do I claim to be one!