Whole milk now allowed in school lunches as Trump signs bill reversing limits

By Tami Luhby, CNN

(CNN) — Whole milk could be coming to your local school cafeteria for the first time in more than a decade.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed a bill that allows schools participating in the National School Lunch Program to serve whole and 2% milk alongside fat-free and low-fat versions.

The move comes a week after the US Department of Health and Human Services released new US dietary guidelines that highlight whole-fat dairy products, a recommendation that has received mixed reviews from nutritionists and medical experts.

The new legislation, which passed Congress last year by unanimous consent, rolls back US Department of Agriculture rules approved by the Obama administration that required milk served in schools to be fat-free or low-fat, part of efforts to fight the childhood obesity epidemic. The new law also allows nondairy beverages that are “nutritionally equivalent” to fluid milk to be offered, such as fortified plant-based milks.

“Removing whole milk did not improve health, it damaged it,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said at the White House signing event, claiming that some students turned to caffeinated and sweetened drinks instead of skim or low-fat milk. “Milk fat is not junk food.”

The USDA has pushed whole milk, posting on X this week an image of Trump wearing a milk mustache and standing in front of a glass of milk, with the words “Drink Whole Milk” at the bottom.

More whole milk was sold in the US in 2024 than other types, with 2% coming in second, according to USDA data. Low-fat and skim milk sales were a distant third and fourth.

Changes won’t happen overnight

The National School Lunch program serves nearly 30 million children, about two-thirds of whom receive free or reduced-price meals.

Whole milk and 2% milk will not appear in schools overnight. There are several steps before it is offered in cafeterias, according to the School Nutrition Association, which represents more than 50,000 school nutrition professionals.

Schools will need to evaluate how much interest there is among students for these options and then discuss availability and price with their suppliers.

Whole milk is more expensive than skim milk, which may prove to be a barrier for some cash-strapped school districts, said Liz Campbell, a registered dietician nutritionist and the association’s vice president for government affairs. Also, the supply of milk options varies widely by region.

What’s more, it’s unclear whether whole milk and 2% milk can be served at breakfast. USDA officials said at an association conference this week that the new legislation addresses only whole milk and 2% milk at lunch, according to Campbell.

The agency has not responded to CNN’s request for clarification. The USDA’s guidance on the law, posted Wednesday, references only expanded options for school lunch programs.

Whole milk and 2% milk should be available in schools soon, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at the White House bill signing.

“It should just take a few weeks, and then the milk starts moving in,” she said.

Dairy producers also promised to help school districts implement the law.

“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,” Gregg Doud, CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, said in a statement when the House passed the bill last month.

Nutrition considerations

For decades, the US dietary guidelines recommended low-fat or fat-free dairy for everyone older than 2, and they recommended that saturated fat intake be less than 10% of daily calories.

The 2025-30 dietary guidelines favor full-fat dairy with no added sugars, calling for three servings per day for someone on a 2,000-calorie diet. The new guidelines did not change the recommendation for overall saturated fat intake.

Under the new legislation, however, fluid milk will not be counted in the saturated fat content calculations, and milk fat in fluid milk will not be considered saturated fat in determining compliance with USDA regulations. So students and parents who are tracking diets will have to take into account the additional fat from whole milk.

The American Heart Association voiced concerns about the new dietary guidelines’ focus on whole-fat dairy. Instead, the group encourages low-fat and fat-free dairy products, which can be beneficial to heart health, it said in a statement.

The new law provides students with additional options, Campbell said, noting that the updated dietary guidelines maintained the previous recommendation for total saturated fat intake.

“Full-fat milk can fit into a healthy diet,” she said.

Whole fat milk is not harmful for most children, though some may need lower-fat options for health reasons, said Amy Reed, a registered dietitian nutritionist and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.

Whether offering whole milk in school will prompt students to drink it rather than juice or other beverages remains to be seen, Reed said.

CNN’s Katherine Dillinger and Jacqueline Howard contributed to this report.

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