The new baby box, offered to all expectant mothers in Finland, contains 63 different items this year with an animal and vegetable theme.

The recycled cardboard box, which doubles as a temporary cot with a mattress inside, was designed by Robert Lönnqvist and is called Daydream. The design features a bear, a seal, and elephant, giraffe and other colourful creatures and won a competition to celebrate the 80-year history of the maternity package.

New products this year include a veggie print short-sleeve bodysuit, and boat neckline suits for the first time ever. Among the other items is a snowsuit with a zipper that turns it into a sleeping back, with a bear pattern on grey background.

It takes more than a year to prepare each new baby box and this year’s version began with competitive tendering in late 2017.

In previous years, Kela has balanced 50% quality and 50% price, but this year they aimed for 70% quality and 30% cost.

Kela, which coordinates the contents and distribution of the baby boxes, came under criticism last year when an investigation by Finnwatch revealed that a dozen items in the 2018 baby box were made in sweatshops in Asia, or connected to manufacturers who exploited workers including children.

However, the lead time for sourcing items to the baby box is so long that changes to the contents as a results of the investigation will be seen in future years.