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The House on Monday passed the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, paving the way for it to go to President Trump for his signature.

The bill passed by voice vote.

The Senate had already passed the bill, which revises National School Lunch Program requirements for milk.

Under the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act passed in 2010, schools participating in the program must provide milk that is consistent with the most recent Dietary Guidelines for Americans, Congress.gov noted in a summary of the bill.

The dairy industry has been lobbying to reverse the decision ever since.

The summary of the bill noted that current USDA regulations "require milk to be fat-free or low-fat and allow milk to be flavored or unflavored."

"The bill modifies these restrictions and instead permits schools to offer students whole, reduced-fat, low-fat, and fat-free flavored and unflavored milk. The milk that is offered may be organic or non-organic. Further, schools currently must provide a substitute for fluid milk, on receipt of a written statement from a licensed physician, for students whose disability restricts their diet. Under the bill, a parent or legal guardian may also provide the written statement.

"In addition, schools currently participating in the program must provide meals that meet certain nutrition requirements; USDA regulations require that the average saturated fat content of the meals offered must be less than 10% of the total calories. Under the bill, fluid milk is excluded from the saturated fat content calculation; milk fat included in any fluid milk provided by the program must not be considered saturated fat for the purposes of measuring compliance with USDA regulations."

Gregg Doud, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, which represents dairy farmers, said, "It's hard to overstate the significance of congressional passage of the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, not only because it represents major progress in improving the nourishment of American school kids, but also because of what it says about how persistent, long-term effort can still bring bipartisan success in Congress."

"Since 2012, when federal nutrition rules took whole and 2% milk out of school meals programs, dairy farmers and their cooperatives have pointed out the flaws in that decision, which wasn't aligned with consumer choice," Doud said.

"What was true then became even more true in years to come, as newer research consistently showed the value of milk at all fat levels and consumers moved even further toward fuller-fat varieties in their purchases."

Doud thanked Rep. Glenn "GT" Thompson, R-Pa., the chairman of the House Agriculture Committee who also serves House Education & the Workforce Committee, and Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Wash., who also serves on Education & the Workforce, who championed the bill.

"The next step, after a presidential signature, is implementation," Doud said. "We pledge our fullest support to federal officials and school districts across the nation to help with implementation of this important legislation. Congress made a positive difference today. We are thrilled to be a part of it."

Michael Dykes, president and CEO of the International Dairy Foods Association, which represents dairy processors, said, "The long wait is over! Whole milk is coming back to schools! Today's House passage marks a defining victory for children's health and for the dairy community that has fought for more than a decade to restore whole and 2% milk for our nation's students."

IDFA thanked Thompson, Schrier and Sens. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., and Peter Welch, D-Vt., for sponsoring and leading the bill in the Senate.

"This bill makes it easier for schools and parents to offer the nutritious milk options that children prefer and consume at home, whether those be whole fat, lower fat, or lactose-free," said Dykes. "IDFA encourages school nutrition directors to plan to incorporate these options into their offerings for students as early as next school year."

IDFA noted, "Since whole and 2% milk were banned from school meal menus more than a decade ago, school milk consumption and meal participation have declined, meaning children are consuming fewer essential nutrients. This is especially concerning considering underconsumption of milk and dairy products is prevalent among school-aged children, where between 68% and 94% of school-age boys and girls are failing to meet recommended levels of dairy intake per federal guidelines."

Analysts have noted that, while consumption of fluid milk has declined, total consumption of milk has increased in recent years, because the consumption of milk-containing products, particularly pizza, has increased.

Some groups continue to oppose whole milk in schools. The Cetner for Science in the Public Interest argued as much as 85% of children consume too much saturated fat. Allowing whole milk in schools will worsen the problem, the group stated.

How much milk consumption will increase when schools can serve whole milk is unclear.

Jerry Hagstrom can be reached at jhagstrom@nationaljournal.com

Follow him on social platform X @hagstromreport

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