Milk consumption has been in decline for decades in the US, falling at a faster rate during the 2010s than in any previous decade. All age groups including children, teenagers, and adults drank less milk in the period, and the downward trend has continued into the 2020s.
In recent years, consumers have shifted their preferences from reduced-fat milk to buying more whole milk, in line with broader market trends towards natural, less processed foods.
But in US schools, only skim and 1% fat milk is offered, in line with current dietary guidelines. Whole and 2% milk last featured on school menus in 2012.
At the same time, around 41% of school milk is thrown away, and about a quarter (21%) of all calories at lunch are not utilized by kids, leading to food waste nutritional gaps. (Source: School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study, 2019)
As US health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. aims to overhaul government nutritional advice and make school meals healthier, whole and 2% milk could return to school lunch tables.
US dairy has been lobbying for this change through the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act. The bill was endorsed by the Senate Agriculture Committee on June 3 with no objections and is now heading for a full Senate vote.
Meanwhile, the bill also advanced out of the House Education and Workforce Committee in February by a 24 to 10 vote and is awaiting further action in the full House of Representatives.
Milk consumption in decline
From 2003–04 to 2017–18, U.S. consumers drank less milk and milk drinks per capita and poured less milk into cereal, but they continued to consume about the same amount of milk with other beverages, such as coffee or tea.
Source: USDA, Economic Research Service analysis of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey–What We Eat In America (NHANES-WWEIA) data, 2003–18
Speaking on the NMPF’s Dairy Defined podcast, the bill’s co-author senator Peter Welch ventured the legislation has more than 60% chance of becoming law. “This is one of those things where if we get it on the floor and get the cooperation of leadership, we get the votes. And this is one of those areas of rare bipartisanship that we have right now,” the senator explained.
Why this matters for dairy
The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act would lift restrictions on offering whole and reduced-fat (1%) milk in US schools. This would literally put the most popular dairy milk varieties in the US in front of kids and teenagers – two cohorts that US dairy has struggled to make fluid milk relevant to through marketing alone.
More broadly, there could be implication for industry growth. Analysis by the USDA ERS shows that generations who grew up drinking less milk as children continued to consume less of it at all ages.
For example, those born in the 1990s consumed milk less often than earlier generations, irrespective of education or race. “All other factors constant, as newer generations with reduced demand gradually replace older ones, the population’s average level of consumption of fluid milk may continue to decline,” concludes a 2013 USDA ERS study led by Hayden Stewart.
Claiming that the availability of whole and 2% milk would boost milk consumption in schools would be a stretch, however, even if a recent national polling by Morning Consult commissioned by IDFA showed 91% of parents serve their children whole or 2% milk at home.
Generation Alpha – those born 2010-2025 – are described as ‘a generation raised on health consciousness and sustainability’ that prioritize functional foods, sustainable sourcing, and ethical consumption, according to Mintel.
To stand a chance of improving fluid milk consumption – particularly among older school children and teenagers – US dairy would need to lean on messaging around health, nutrition and sustainability, in addition to getting their products on school lunch tables.
According to the federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans (2020–2025), children aged two through 10 years should consume two to three cup-equivalents of dairy products per day, with specific quantities based on age, gender, and level of physical activity. Meanwhile, underconsumption of milk and dairy products is prevalent among school-aged children, where between 68% and 94% of boys and girls respectively are failing to meet recommended levels of dairy intake.
Industry reaction
Reacting to the Committee’s endorsement of the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, Michael Dykes, president and CEO of IDFA, said: “After more than a decade of waiting, it’s time to lift the ban on whole and 2% milk and give children more nutritious choices in school cafeterias. We urge the full Senate and the House of Representatives to pass the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act.”
NMPF president and CEO, Gregg Doud, added: “We’re grateful that this common-sense legislation has received such strong support from both sides of the aisle. Passing the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act will allow more schoolkids to access essential nutrients in their diets, and that’s something everyone can get behind.”
