The "Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025" allows schools to offer a wider variety of milk options, including whole milk, and stipulates that milk fat is not considered saturated fat for meal compliance purposes.
Roger Marshall
Senator
KS
The "Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025" allows schools to offer a wider variety of milk options, including whole milk (both flavored and unflavored, organic and non-organic), reduced-fat, low-fat, fat-free, and lactose-free milk. It also allows for specific milk types to be requested by a physician, parent, or guardian. Furthermore, the bill specifies that milk fat will not be considered as saturated fat when measuring compliance with saturated fat content regulations for school meals.
Schools Can Now Offer Whole Milk, Among Other Options, Starting 2025
The "Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025" makes some changes to what kind of milk schools can offer. Essentially, schools get the green light to serve all types of milk: whole, reduced-fat, low-fat, fat-free, and even lactose-free options, flavored or unflavored. The key change here is the inclusion of whole milk, which wasn't always an option before. The law, as stated in SEC. 2, also specifically says that milk fat doesn't count towards the usual limits on saturated fat in school meals.
Pouring Choices: Options for Parents, Doctors, and Students
This bill isn't just about expanding the menu; it also gives parents and doctors more say. If a student needs a specific type of milk, a parent, guardian, or even a physician can put in a request, and the school has to provide it. This could be a big deal for kids with dietary restrictions or specific health needs. For example, a parent who wants their child to have organic whole milk for dietary reasons can now make that request formally.
Real-World Ripple Effects
So, what does this mean on a day-to-day basis? For starters, kids who prefer the taste of whole milk might actually start drinking milk at school, which is a win for getting those nutrients. It also means more flexibility for families. Think of a parent juggling work and kids' activities – knowing they can request a specific milk type might ease some of that daily stress, and it allows for parents to have a more custom approach to their child's nutritional needs. The inclusion of whole milk could be a plus for the dairy industry, too, potentially opening up a bigger market within schools.
Potential Hurdles
One potential hiccup? While more choices sound great, there's a chance some schools might opt for cheaper milk options to cut costs, which could mean sacrificing nutritional value. Also, by not counting milk fat towards saturated fat limits, schools might have more leeway to include other, less healthy items on the menu, as long as they technically meet the overall fat guidelines. It will be important to monitor how this plays out in practice, to ensure that expanding choices doesn't unintentionally lead to less healthy meals overall.