Suggested citation: Minnesota WIC Information System. Breastfeeding Initiation and Duration for Minnesota WIC Infants Born During Selected Time Period by Location. Minnesota WIC Program: 2025.

Methodology: Location (PDF)

Location is where infants first enrolled in WIC. Counts and percentages are based on number of infants on whom breastfeeding information was collected.

* Totals and numbers breastfeeding < 5 are suppressed. Percentages are not calculated for agencies with < 30 participants.

When multiple years are selected, totals are cumulative.

Note: As the birth cohort matures and participants are interviewed at their next WIC visit, numbers for the most recent years increase and rates may change. Most recent years’ data are considered preliminary until year-end numbers are finalized.

2022 data were finalized in June of 2024.
2023 and 2024 data are preliminary, most recently updated March 2025.

Breastfeeding Initiation and Duration

Breastfeeding duration increased slightly among WIC participants from 2017 through 2019, then decreased in 2020 and 2021, possibly due to the pandemic. In 2022 duration rates rebounded and declined again slightly in 2023.

Summary by Location and Year(s)

Breastfeeding at Specific Time Points

Data Tables

Downloadable file of WIC summary breastfeeding data by County (csv)

For more information, please e-mail health.WIC@state.mn.us.