Whole milk may be coming back to schools
- Jeff Ishee
- 5 days ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
Source: American Farm Bureau
NOVEMBER 20, 2025 - More than a decade after USDA regulations banned whole milk from school menus, Congress is considering a comeback. The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act would overturn 2012 rules that limited schools to fat-free or 1% milk, aiming to revive a category losing ground and reconnect kids with milk’s taste and nutrition.
Behind the debate is a market challenge: U.S. milk output is hitting record highs while fluid consumption falls. Allowing whole milk could provide a small but meaningful outlet for butterfat — key to farm revenue — and create new opportunities for local dairies.
Shifting Dairy Trends
Americans drink far less milk than they used to — down nearly 50% since 1975 and 28% since 2010. Cheese, butter and yogurt consumption has surged, but fluid milk use continues to decline, partly due to changing breakfast habits. Whole milk is the exception: from 2013 to 2024, sales grew 16% while skim and reduced-fat options plunged. Whole milk’s share of fluid sales rose from 27% to 38%, driven by interest in protein-rich and minimally processed foods and even appetite-suppressing drug regimens that prioritize fuller-fat, higher-protein options for satiety and sustained energy.
How Whole Milk Disappeared
The National School Lunch Program serves nearly 30 million students daily and accounts for about 7.5% of U.S. fluid milk sales, making its standards influential. In 2012, USDA rules under the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act restricted school milk to fat-free or 1%, banning whole and 2% options. Later updates allowed 1% flavored milk, but higher-fat varieties remain prohibited.
Milk consumption dropped sharply after the change. From 2008 to 2018, weekly servings per student fell 15%, with the decline accelerating 77% after the restrictions. When kids skip milk, schools miss nutrition goals, dairy demand weakens and unopened cartons add to food waste and costs.
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