1stepsnutrition

What 1stepsnutrition does

First Steps Nutrition Trust is an independent UK public health nutrition charity (registered charity no. 1146408) founded in 2011 by Dr Helen Crawley, a dietitian and public health nutritionist. The organisation produces evidence-based, conflict-of-interest-free information and resources covering nutrition from pre-conception through age five, including dedicated guides on eating well in pregnancy, infant feeding, introducing solids, commercial baby food composition, additives, ultra-processed foods marketed to children, and WHO Code compliance. Its core product is a continuously updated library of expert-authored PDF resources, hosted on firststepsnutrition.org and the partner site infantmilkinfo.org, with subsidised hard copies sold at cost through an in-house webshop.

The charity serves three primary beneficiary groups: health professionals (health visitors, dietitians, nurses) supporting pregnant women and families; parents and carers of young children; and policymakers and advocates working on infant feeding and commercial baby food regulation. Its resources are accredited for use in Unicef UK Baby Friendly Initiative settings, embedding them in standard health-visiting practice. Revenue is generated through grants and donations from a diversified funder base that includes long-term individual donor Lizzie Vann, charitable trusts (A Team Foundation, Big Lottery, Nutritional Wellbeing Foundation, Henry Oldfield Trust, Marcia Brady Tucker Foundation), government bodies (Scottish Government, Welsh Assembly), academic institutions (UCL), and foundations (Impact on Urban Health). The charity explicitly excludes funding from the breastmilk substitute industry as a condition of its independence.

First Steps is governed by seven trustees and operates with a small team under Director Dr Vicky Sibson (appointed 2021), supported by senior and junior nutritionists, a social media and communications intern, and an administrator. It maintains high-profile patrons (Jamie Oliver MBE, Patti Rundall OBE) and acts as secretariat for the Baby Feeding Law Group UK. In 2026 it joined the Impact on Urban Health-funded Commercial Baby Food Review alongside Obesity Health Alliance, Bremner & Co, Sustain, Planetary Alliance and the University of Leeds, extending its remit into commercial baby and toddler food policy.

Name

1stepsnutrition

Legal name

First Steps Nutrition Trust

Website

https://firststepsnutrition.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

First Steps Nutrition Trust is an independent UK charity providing evidence-based, conflict-of-interest-free nutrition resources covering pre-conception to age five, distributed freely to health workers, parents, and families across the UK.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Health Nutrition Resources

NAICS

Voluntary Health Organizations (813212)

SIC

Services-Misc Health & Allied Services, Nec (8090)

akta.pro primary industry

Infant & Toddler Nutrition Education (Complementary Feeding) (EDACAMAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Breastfeeding, Lactation & Infant Feeding Support (EDACAMAB), Obesity Prevention & Healthy Lifestyle Programs (Early Years) (EDACAMAF)

Keywords

• Public health nutrition
• Infant feeding resources
• Early childhood nutrition
• Infant milk information
• Nutrition education materials

Headquarters

HQ city

City Of London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Charity primarily funded through individual donations and conflict-of-interest-free grants from donors including Lizzie Vann, Jean Crawley, Doro Marsden, The A Team Foundation, Institute of Health Visiting, Health Education England, Big Lottery, Nutritional Wellbeing Foundation, Impact on Urban Health, Marcia Brady Tucker Foundation, Henry Oldfield Trust, The Scottish Government, Welsh Assembly, and University College London. Does not accept funding from breastmilk substitute industry.
2. Resource Sales: Subsidized hard copies of resources sold at cost price through the charity's webshop. Free PDF downloads available for not-for-profit use.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

First Steps Nutrition Trust is an independent public health nutrition charity that produces free, evidence-based resources and guidance on eating well from pre-conception to age five. Its core offerings include the Eating Well resource series (pregnancy, infancy, early years), the infantmilkinfo.org portal covering UK infant milks, and Children's Food resources on commercial baby food composition, additives, and ultra-processed foods. Resources are distributed as free PDF downloads and subsidized hard copies (e.g., Eating Well: The First Year at £19.99), targeted at health workers, parents and carers, and policymakers in the UK.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Eating Well Resource Series Evidence-based nutrition resources covering eating well in pregnancy, infancy and the early years, authored by nutrition experts and regularly updated, for health workers and parents/carers.
• Infant Milks Information Portal (infantmilkinfo.org) Comprehensive, conflict-of-interest-free information on UK infant milks for 0-12 month olds, including cost comparisons, composition, claims, additives, and milks marketed for children, targeted at health workers and parents/carers.
• Children's Food Resources Evidence-based resources on commercial baby food composition, drinks and milks marketed for children 1-4 years, food additives, and ultra-processed foods marketed for infants and young children in the UK.
• Publications and Policy Outputs Reports, policy statements, and consultation responses on infant feeding, infant milks regulation, commercial baby food marketing, and ultra-processed foods, produced for policymakers, advocates, and health workers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Resources used in Unicef UK Baby Friendly Initiative accredited settings

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Unicef UK Baby Friendly InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting health workers in Baby Friendly Initiative accredited settings. Resources provided can be used in these accredited settings.
• Baby Feeding Law Group UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFirst Steps Nutrition Trust serves as secretariat for Baby Feeding Law Group UK, which campaigns for stronger UK regulation of breastmilk substitute marketing in line with the International Code.
• Obesity Health AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on food policy advocacy and improving nutritional composition and marketing of commercial baby and toddler foods.
• Commercial Baby Food Review PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint initiative with Obesity Health Alliance, Bremner & Co, Sustain, Planetary Alliance and University of Leeds, funded by Impact on Urban Health, focusing on improving nutritional composition and marketing of commercial baby foods in the UK.
• Children's Food CampaignminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on children's food policy and advocacy.
• APPG on Infant Feeding and InequalitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupport and collaboration with the All Party Parliamentary Group on Infant Feeding and Inequalities.
• Soil AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRob Percival, Head of Food Policy at Soil Association, serves as a Trustee of First Steps Nutrition Trust.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• La Leche League GB: UK charity providing mother-to-mother breastfeeding support, training, and information. Shares First Steps' commitment to evidence-based infant feeding guidance and overlapping audience of parents and health professionals.
• Health Education Trust: UK charity promoting healthy food provision in schools and early years settings. First Steps trustee Marjon Willers co-directs the trust, and the two organizations share a focus on nutrition standards for children and early years settings.
• Caroline Walker Trust: UK charity working on public health nutrition, including early years nutrition. First Steps' founder Dr Helen Crawley previously served as Science Director, and the two organizations share a focus on evidence-based nutrition resources for vulnerable groups.
• Baby Milk Action: UK campaigning organization focused on protecting infants from irresponsible marketing of breastmilk substitutes. Patti Rundall OBE, a First Steps patron, is Baby Milk Action's Policy Director, indicating closely overlapping mission and advocacy agenda.
• Baby Feeding Law Group UK: Coalition campaigning for stronger UK regulation of breastmilk substitute marketing in line with the WHO Code. First Steps serves as its secretariat, making it a tightly coupled policy peer with near-identical advocacy objectives.

Broad incumbents

• UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative: UK programme accrediting maternity, neonatal, health visiting, and children's centre services for evidence-based infant feeding and relationship-based care. First Steps' resources are usable in BFI-accredited settings, creating a tightly coupled institutional relationship.
• National Childbirth Trust (NCT): UK's largest charity supporting parents through pregnancy, birth, and early years. NCT's early years resources and breastfeeding support overlap with First Steps' parenting-focused content, though NCT operates at significantly larger scale across a broader parenting agenda.
• Obesity Health Alliance: UK coalition of over 60 health organizations campaigning for policies to address obesity. First Steps is a partner within the alliance and a co-implementer of the Commercial Baby Food Review, with overlapping policy and commercial-baby-food reform objectives.
• IBFAN (International Baby Food Action Network): Global network campaigning for the protection of breastfeeding and against irresponsible marketing of breastmilk substitutes. First Steps patron Patti Rundall OBE co-chairs IBFAN's Global Council, linking the organizations in shared international advocacy on the WHO Code.

Others

• Soil Association: UK charity campaigning for healthy and sustainable food systems, including ultra-processed food policy. First Steps trustee Rob Percival is Head of Food Policy there, and the organizations share overlapping food policy and early-years nutrition advocacy agendas.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/1stepsnutrition
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/first-steps-nutrition-trust

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

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