Each year since 2010, the Gerber baby food company calls on parents to send in photos of their children to be selected as the next Gerber “spokesbaby.” The Gerber “spokesbaby” doesn’t replace the classic logo that was selected in the 1928 portrait competition, but has a few fun perks.
The new Gerber baby gets his portrait used in marketing campaigns to represent the brand throughout the year.
Cortney Warren decided to enter her son Lucas into the contest on Instagram on a whim and he ended up being selected as the first Gerber baby with Down Syndrome. The 1-year-old from Dalton, Georgia was chosen out of more than 140,000 entries for the 2019 Gerber Spokesbaby contest.
“He’s very outgoing and never meets a stranger,” Cortney told TODAY Parents. “He loves to play, loves to laugh and loves to make other people laugh.”
Gerber CEO and President Bill Partyka said Lucas’ smiling face is what captured the attention of his company.
“Every year, we choose the baby who best exemplifies Gerber’s longstanding heritage of recognizing that every baby is a Gerber baby,” said Partyka. “This year, Lucas is the perfect fit.”
Lucas’ dad says that he hopes his son’s new role will serve as much more than a company spokesperson.
“We’re hoping this will impact everyone — that it will shed a little bit of light on the special needs community and help more individuals with special needs be accepted and not limited,” Jason Warren said. “They have the potential to change the world, just like everybody else.”
Cortney says she hopes her son will be proud of his accomplishment one day.
“He may have Down syndrome, but he’s always Lucas first,” said Cortney. “He’s got an awesome personality and he goes through the milestones of every child… we’re hoping when he grows up and looks back on this, he’ll be proud of himself and not ashamed of his disability.”
Some, however, said that Gerber’s selection of this year’s spokesbaby is nothing more than a marketing ploy rather than a measure to help uplift those with disabilities.
According to BBC, some on social media have alleged that their affiliate insurance company, Gerber Life, has denied policies to children with Down syndrome.
“Beautiful!
#gerberlife does this mean you will start insuring babies with#DownSyndrome? My#gerberbaby was denied insurance coverage in 2006,” one person tweeted.
Gerber Life says that their policies are issued based on each child’s unique situation and did not comment on the individual case.
“This includes issuing some policies that cover children with Down’s syndrome,” a spokesperson told BBC.
Learn more about Lucas, the new Gerber baby, below.
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