For the first time since 2012, school cafeterias will once again be serving whole milk to students. The “Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act” was signed into law on January 14. 2026, and immediately rolls back years of policy shift that left schools offering students only fat-free or 1% low-fat milk.
Schools first began including milk in school lunches in the early 1900s as part of various (mostly local) efforts to boost kids’ nutrition. It became federal policy in 1946 when Congress passed the “National School Lunch Act,” which in turn created the National School Lunch Program (NSLP). The program was seen as a win-win that supported the health of America’s youth while also creating a steady and reliable market for US agriculture, and milk in particular.
It might be hard to believe today, but childhood and adult malnutrition alike were a significant concern in the early 20th century, even though the science of “nutrition” was still in its infancy. Historical data from a 1918-1919 U.S. health survey showed significant stunting (impaired growth) with concerns about long-term effects on education and work. However, even as health authorities recognized malnutrition as widespread, they struggled to define and reliably measure it, leading to inconsistent data and debate.
Ultimately, issues with Americans’ health started to become a greater concern for economic and national security. In the early 20th century, a disease known as “rickets” was rampant in U.S. industrial cities, affecting up to 90% of children. The condition causes children’s bones to soften and weaken. Children working in factories did not have much exposure to sunlight, and factory pollution blocked much of the sunlight if they were outdoors. In addition to weakened bones, symptoms of rickets include stunted growth, delayed motor skills, pain, muscle weakness, and skeletal deformities.
By the 1920s, scientists identified Vitamin D as a crucial nutrient in preventing rickets, making food fortification a possibility in fighting the disease. But what foods should be fortified? Milk rose as the logical answer because nearly every child’s diet at the time included milk. In addition, putting it in milk meant that Vitamin D would then be taken in conjunction with the naturally occurring calcium and phosphorus elements in milk that work in conjunction to build bone density.
Rickets was almost completely eliminated by the mid-1930s thanks to milk fortification efforts, though outbreaks have reoccurred on occasion. Those tend to be linked to periods of increased immigration to the US among populations that have not benefited from the same types of nutrition interventions we enjoy here.
While milk was included as a cornerstone in the initial launch of the National School Lunch Program, policymakers found that many children still lacked access if they did not participate in Federal child nutrition meal programs. The “Special Milk Program” in 1954 provided federal support specifically for milk in schools, childcare institutions, and nonprofits, among others.
Milk, and specifically whole milk, remained a top food for childhood nutrition up until the early 2000s when childhood obesity became a key concern. As research increasingly tied saturated fat intake to obesity, along with weight-related diseases like diabetes and heart disease, whole milk became a target. US dietary guidelines began emphasizing limiting fat intake and the school lunch program was no exception. The “Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act” marked a turning of the tide for milk in schools, with whole and 2% milk eliminated from the list of allowable options in school lunches.
A large share of nutrition experts and parents were never on board with removing whole milk from schools, and, along with the dairy industry, they spent over a decade trying to reverse the law. Critics have also said that many children don’t like the taste of lower-fat milk and don’t drink it, leading to missed nutrition and food waste.
The dairy industry is cautiously optimistic about the changes. While milk with higher fat content is back on school menus, fat-free and 1% milk options will also still be available. Additionally, the law permits schools to serve nondairy milk alternatives that meet the nutritional standards of milk. In other words, the real difference will be whether more kids ultimately choose to drink whole milk.
In case you are wondering… milk consumption in the US has declined some -50% since the 1970s and nearly -30% since just 2010, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). Whole milk, however, has been a recent exception – whole milk sales grew +16% between 2013 and 2024 while sales of skim and reduced-fat milk plunged.
The success of whole milk in schools could provide a meaningful boost for US dairy farmers, who are currently confronting record-high milk output. The new rules change meals served to about 30 million kids enrolled in the National School Lunch Program. The signing of the new law came days after the release of the 2025- 2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which emphasize the consumption of full-fat dairy products as part of a healthy diet.
One quirk of the new regulations that return full-fat milk to schools is that the guidelines call for “no added sugars.” That means flavored milks, such as chocolate (my favorite) and strawberry, will not be allowed under the new school meal standards. Officials are still working on specific requirements for schools to eliminate flavored milks.(Sources: USDA, American Farm Bureau Federation, DTN, The Bullvine)
