With protein recognized as a major factor in our diets lately, it is no surprise whole milk is back in our schools and homes as a great protein source.
On Jan. 7, President Donald Trump signed the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act into law to get whole milk – as well as low-fat and no-fat milk – into schools and other federally-funded kitchens.
This act counters the Obama administration’s Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act which banned whole milk on the reasoning children’s calories from fat should be restricted. This act really hurt the school lunch program and left a lot of food in the school lunch line untouched.
According to the National Milk Producers Federation, students consumed 288 million fewer half pints of milk from 2012-15 and 213 million fewer in 2014-16.
Overall, throughout these policy changes, Americans as a whole have rapidly pulled back on the consumption of milk.
According to the American Farm Bureau Federation, milk consumption fell 28 percent since 2010. Consumption has been falling since 1975 though – down 50 percent in the last 50 years. Milk demand is difficult to figure, as a shift in government dietary guidelines and the consumer narrative have certainly had an impact on demand.
Now, many people feel it is unlikely per-capita consumption will get back to 2010 levels anytime soon. Hopefully, the new dietary guidelines and Trump’s new act will jumpstart people’s choice back to milk.
The bill Trump signed also includes the Protecting Children with Food Allergies Act, which states food service staff in schools should receive training on food allergies and how to recognize and prevent allergic reactions. It also allows schools to provide milk alternatives in food lines.
I realize there are students and faculty who are lactose intolerant, and there is the need to provide alternatives in schools for those who request it.
As one who grew up on raw milk, I’m a big milk promoter. On the other hand, I have friends who have children who are lactose intolerant and have to drink goat’s milk or other alternatives.
I hope this new law will help the dairy industry, which throughout the past few years has had some low times. It is not an easy business, but those in the industry realize to succeed they must have a large dairy. Even in Wyoming we have a dairy with over 2,000 milk cows.
I’ve always thought the bad part about changing food groups is the political piece – we don’t need any administration or Congress telling us how and what to eat. It is the job of parents to find out what foods they want their children to consume.
I’m glad whole milk and its alternatives are recognized as healthy for school lunch lines, just don’t call it milk if it is plant based.
Dennis Sun is the publisher of the Wyoming Livestock Roundup, a weekly agriculture newspaper, available online and in print.
