"As your constituent, I urge you to vote “No” on S. 1957 The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act.
The U.S. Senate should support the evidence-based process for improving nutrition through federal child nutrition programs, such as school meals, based upon the findings of independent reviewers and the scientific community—not special interests.
S. 1957 disregards the guidance of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans at the behest of a powerful special interest group – a dangerous precedent that could have catastrophic implications for the healthfulness of school meals and the integrity of school nutrition standards.
This bill would allow schools to serve whole milk, contrary to the recommendations of the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the American Heart Association, and the American College of Cardiology. These health authorities recommend low-fat or fat-free milk starting at age 2 to achieve a heart-healthy, nutrient-rich diet that limits saturated fat to less than 10 percent of calories. Replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats can lower LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, a cause of heart disease. Between 78 and 88 percent of school-age children’s diets already exceed the recommended limit of saturated fat.
School meals must remain healthy and help kids get the nutrition they need. To be clear, schools already must provide milk at breakfast and lunch, but they only offer varieties—fat-free and low-fat—with lower amounts of saturated fat.
Rather than legislating the nutrition standards outside of Child Nutrition Reauthorization, Congress should focus on opportunities to increase access to school meals (and by extension, milk). S.1568, the Universal School Meals Program Act of 2023, would help more kids have access to milk at school. I urge you to please leave the nutrition standards to the USDA, and instead, cosponsor these bills.
S. 1957 puts the dairy industry’s interests before the health of students. I again ask you to consider our children’s health above all and vote against the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act."
The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act (H.R. 1147) puts Big Dairy’s interests before the health of students. Health experts recommend against whole milk for kids due to higher saturated fat and increased risk of heart disease later in life. Tell Congress to choose kids’ health over industry pressure.
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