At a Glance
- President Trump signed the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, reversing Obama-era limits on higher-fat milk in school cafeterias.
- Schools can now serve whole and 2% milk alongside skim and low-fat options for nearly 30 million students.
- The law also expands nondairy milk access, requiring schools to offer alternatives with a parent note instead of a doctor’s note.
- Why it matters: The change could reshape childhood nutrition, with supporters claiming better taste and nutrition and critics citing obesity concerns.
President Trump has overturned a decade-old policy that restricted milk choices in school lunches, signing legislation that brings whole and 2% milk back to cafeterias nationwide. The move affects the 30 million students enrolled in the National School Lunch Program and marks a significant shift in federal nutrition policy.
New Law Expands Milk Options
The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, which cleared Congress last fall, allows schools participating in the National School Lunch Program to serve whole and 2% fat milk alongside the skim and low-fat products that have been required since 2012. The legislation also permits schools to serve nondairy milk alternatives that meet milk’s nutritional standards.
Key provisions include:
- Schools must offer a nondairy milk alternative if parents provide a note about their child’s dietary restriction
- Doctor’s notes are no longer required for nondairy options
- Milk fat is exempted from federal saturated fat limits in school meals
- Flavored and unflavored organic or conventional milk options are permitted
Political Support and Criticism
At a White House signing ceremony featuring lawmakers, dairy farmers and their children, Trump emphasized bipartisan support for the measure. “Whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican, whole milk is a great thing,” he said.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. described the new law as “a long-overdue correction to school nutrition policy.” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said it fixed what she called Michelle Obama’s “short-sighted campaign to ditch whole milk.”
The law reverses provisions of the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act championed by former first lady Michelle Obama more than a dozen years ago. That legislation aimed to slow obesity and boost health by reducing children’s consumption of saturated fat and calories in higher-fat milk.
Timing with New Dietary Guidelines
The signing comes days after the release of the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which emphasize consumption of full-fat dairy products as part of a healthy diet. Previous editions had advised that consumers older than 2 should consume low-fat or fat-free dairy.
The Trump administration released these new dietary guidelines Wednesday with renewed focus on protein and healthy fats. “We are ending the war on saturated fats,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said, adding, “Today our government declares war on added sugar.”
Earlier this week, the Agriculture Department posted on social media showing Trump with a glass of milk and a “milk mustache” with the message: “Drink Whole Milk.”
Implementation Timeline and Challenges
The change could take effect as soon as this fall, though school nutrition and dairy industry officials said it may take longer for some schools to gauge demand for full-fat dairy and adjust supply chains.
Schools will need to:
- Assess student demand for whole and 2% milk
- Modify supply chain arrangements
- Update menu planning to include expanded milk options
- Train staff on new serving requirements
Nutritional Debate
Supporters of whole milk argue it provides better nutrition and taste. Nutrition experts, lawmakers and the dairy industry have argued that whole milk is a delicious, nutritious food that has been unfairly vilified. Critics of the previous policy said many children don’t like the taste of lower-fat milk and don’t drink it, leading to missed nutrition and food waste.
Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian of Tufts University, a top nutrition expert, has said there is “no meaningful benefit” in choosing low-fat over high-fat dairy. “Saturated fat in dairy has not been linked to any adverse health outcomes,” Mozaffarian said in an interview.
Research on Childhood Obesity
The debate centers on conflicting research about milk fat and childhood obesity. Research has shown that changes in the federal nutrition program after the Obama-era law was enacted slowed the rise in obesity among U.S. kids, including teenagers.
However, some nutrition experts point to newer research that suggests kids who drink whole milk could be less likely to be overweight or develop obesity than children who drink lower-fat milk. One 2020 review of 28 studies suggests that the risk was 40% less for kids who drank whole milk, although the authors noted they couldn’t say whether milk consumption was the reason.
Impact on School Meal Standards
The new dietary guidelines call for “full-fat dairy with no added sugars,” which would preclude chocolate- and strawberry-flavored milks allowed under a recent update of school meal standards. Agriculture officials will need to translate this recommendation into specific requirements for schools, potentially eliminating flavored milks.
The new law exempts milk fat from being considered as part of federal requirements that average saturated fats make up less than 10% of calories in school meals. This exemption allows schools flexibility in menu planning while maintaining nutritional standards.
Industry Response
The dairy industry has long sought the return of whole and 2% milk to school meals. Industry representatives argue that higher-fat milk options will:
- Increase student consumption of dairy products
- Reduce food waste from unpopular low-fat options
- Provide more palatable choices for children
- Support dairy farmers through increased demand
Looking Ahead
As schools prepare to implement these changes, education and nutrition officials will monitor:
- Student acceptance of expanded milk options
- Impact on overall meal consumption
- Effects on childhood nutrition outcomes
- Cost implications for school meal programs
The success of the policy change will likely depend on how quickly schools can adapt their operations and whether the expanded choices lead to improved nutrition for the millions of children who depend on school meals.
