The Senate Agriculture Committee’s chair has blocked the Whole Mil For Healthy Kids bill. During Thursday’s floor discussion, Michigan Democrat Debbie Stabenow said that she supports healthy alternatives for children and that dairy is a key element of a balanced diet. “But one thing that’s clear, and that is that school meal standards currently based on dietary science should continue to be based on dietary science, not based on which individual food products that we support.”
Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas drafted the companion measure and requested unanimous approval to bring it up for a Senate vote. “As medical costs continue to rise and the obesity epidemic worsens, I rise today to correct the record.” Milk is a component of the solution, not the issue.”
According to Marshall, calcium, potassium, and vitamin D are three of the top four underutilized nutrients in America, and milk is high in these minerals.
According to Stabenow, the USDA is in the midst of rewriting school food guidelines, and it is critical that they make judgments about what is best for our children based on the most recent nutritional research.
