The House gave final congressional approval Monday to a bill allowing schools to return to serving whole milk, overturning a key provision of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act passed in 2010.
The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, which passed the House by voice vote, is headed to President Donald Trump for his expected signature.
"Milk is an essential building block for a well-rounded and balanced diet, offering 13 nutrients and numerous health benefits," said House Agriculture Committee Chair Glenn "GT" Thompson, R-Pa. "Unfortunately, out of touch and outdated federal regulations have imposed restrictions on the types of milk students have access to."
He also said dairy consumption among children fell short of what was recommended under the federal dietary guidelines and that the restrictions had turned away an "entire generation of milk drinkers."
The bill lets schools serve flavored and unflavored reduced-fat (2%) and whole milk. Those varieties are prohibited under the 2010 law that mandates flavored milk be fat-free and traditional milk be 1% fat at most.
Schools also would be allowed to offer dairy-free milk alternatives such as soy, oat and almond. Kids also could get non-dairy beverages if they are lactose-intolerant.
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The Senate approved the bill by unanimous consent in November.
“It’s hard to overstate the significance of congressional passage of the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, not only because it represents major progress in improving the nourishment of American schoolkids, but also because of what it says about how persistent, long-term effort can still bring bipartisan success in Congress," Gregg Doud, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, said in a statement.
The bill’s passage “marks a defining victory for children’s health and for the dairy community that has fought for more than a decade to restore whole and 2% milk for our nation’s students,” said Michael Dykes, president and CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association.
Wayne Pacelle, president of Animal Wellness Action and the Center for a Humane Economy, welcomed the provisions for non-dairy beverages. “After its 80-year run, the cow’s milk mandate in the National School Lunch Program will end and kids will finally have the choice of selecting a nutritious beverage that they can safely consume,” he said in a statement.
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