Bill to allow schools to serve whole milk introduced

A bill to allow schools to serve all forms of milk with lunches was introduced by U.S. Senators Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) on June 12. The Milk in Lunches for Kids (MILK) Act would allow schools to serve flavored and unflavored whole milk and two percent milk along with flavored and unflavored skim and one percent milk which is currently allowed with lunches.

“Overregulation has limited the healthy varieties of milk schools can serve students. Since these Obama-era regulations went into place, milk consumption has notably declined in schools across the country,” said Johnson in a news release. “I’m pleased to co-sponsor this legislation that would give schools the ability to serve all forms of milk, including whole milk and flavored milk. Greater choice allows schools and students to make the best choice for them.”

The MILK Act also requires the Secretary of Agriculture to revise regulations to exclude milk fat from the cap on saturated fat in school lunches. 

In 2010, Congress passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act which amended nutrition standards in the School Lunch Program and limited school’s unflavored milk options to skim and one percent and limited the flavored milk options to only skim milk. In 2018, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a rule that allowed schools to also serve flavored one percent milk to students.

"Every parent knows milk does a body good," Toomey said in a news release. "In 2010, the Obama Administration and Congress erred in prohibiting whole milk and two percent from being served in schools. This decision has led to a sharp decline in consumption across the country, which means kids are not getting essential nutrients milk provides. This measure fixes that error and permits schools to sell whole and two percent milk once again."