WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has enacted a new law reinstating whole milk in federally funded school lunch programs. This change reverses a longstanding effort to combat childhood obesity by excluding whole milk from school meals. The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act aims to provide millions of children access to nutritious milk, aligning with Trump’s health initiatives. The signing, held in the Oval Office, was described as a significant win for American dairy farmers.
The White House ceremony featured key figures including Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, who announced immediate steps to implement the new school milk policies. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. praised the law as a necessary shift in school nutrition guidelines prioritizing children’s health. The event also included Dr. Ben Carson and bipartisan senators and representatives who supported the legislation. The bill, passed by the House in December after a Senate approval in November, was championed by lawmakers such as Sens. Peter Welch and Roger Marshall.
White House Ceremony
The new law expands milk options in the USDA’s National School Lunch Program, allowing schools to serve “flavored and unflavored organic or nonorganic whole, reduced-fat, low-fat, and fat-free milk.” The program supports millions of children with affordable lunches annually, according to the Food Research & Action Center. Additionally, schools can offer nondairy beverages meeting nutritional standards set by the Agriculture Secretary. Notably, the law excludes milk fat from being classified as saturated fat in meal plans.
Parents and doctors can request nondairy milk substitutes for students, broadening dietary options. Michael Dykes, CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association, celebrated the law as beneficial to children and school nutrition programs, offering flexibility in milk choices. This legislative update coincides with the USDA and Health and Human Services releasing the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, promoting more full-fat dairy consumption.
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