Congress’ proposed whole milk bill meets with approval from local farmers
After an 11-year absence, whole milk could return to American school cafeterias, much to the delight of Butler County farmers.
The “Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act,” officially known as H.R. 1147, passed through the U.S. House of Representatives on Dec. 13 by a vote of 330 to 99. The act would allow schools participating in the national School Lunch Program to “offer students whole, reduced-fat, low-fat, and fat-free flavored and unflavored milk.”
This would undo legislation from 2012, when the USDA restricted milk options for the National School Lunch Program to only low-fat and fat-free.
U.S. Rep. Glenn “G.T.” Thompson, R-15th, who once represented a portion of Butler, voted for the bill.
“Milk is an essential building block for a well-rounded and balanced diet, offering 13 essential nutrients and numerous health benefits,” Thompson said. “However, out-of-touch and outdated federal regulations have imposed restrictions on the types of milk students have access to in school meals.”
Rep. Mike Kelly, R-16th, also voted in favor.
Craig Marburger, president of Evans City-based Marburger Farm Dairy, is wholly in favor of the bill and believes it will have positive effects both on America’s schoolchildren and on dairy businesses.
“This will help us get back another generation of milk drinkers,” Marburger said. “The kids will learn to like to drink milk. They associate the milk that they get at the school with the milk they get at the store, and they’ll like (whole milk) better than the choice they're given now.”
Marburger Dairy currently manufactures milk of all kinds, including whole, 2%, 1%, skim, chocolate, buttermilk, and, during the holiday season, eggnog. The farm supplies milk to school districts in Butler County.
Craig says the loss of whole milk in schools over the last decade led to a downturn in sales for certain milk products, most notably chocolate milk.
“Whenever (schools) went to skim chocolate, it reduced the chocolate milk consumption by at least somewhere around 30-40%,” Marburger said. “That’s starting to come back because (the USDA) did let 1% back in.”
Craig characterized the loss of whole milk as an option for school children as a “disaster,” saying it led children away from drinking any milk at all and toward other beverages, even water.
“It ended up losing a generation of milk drinkers,” Marburger said. “The kids got turned against milk and would not drink milk, so they're not getting enough calcium.”
Also speaking in favor of the proposed bill is William Thiele, Butler County native and district 15 director for the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau.
“I think it'll be positive, especially for the consumers,” Thiele said. “They're gonna view it as a more nutritious beverage than 2% or low-fat milk.”
Whole milk was removed from the National School Lunch Program in 2012 in favor of lower-fat options, as part of an effort by the Obama administration to combat childhood obesity.
Thiele contends the health benefits of whole milk outweigh the potential downsides.
“Some people view whole milk as ‘too fattening’ or whatever,” Thiele said. “Hopefully their minds have changed and they’ll say, ‘Hey, this milk has good fat in it.’ If you gorge on milk all the time, that’s a different story.”
Thiele said dairy farmers may have to wait a while to see the economic impact of the bill, assuming it does pass through the Senate and become law.
“I would say it's not going to be immediate,” Thiele said. “I’d say it’s more of a very long-term thing.”
According to data from the USDA from 2022, Pennsylvania produces more dairy than 44 other states.
Earlier this year, the USDA proposed further limits on milk choices for students, by limiting flavored milk options to high school students only. According to the proposal, it would cut down on the amount of sugar and calories in children’s diets.
