Kevin Kiley: “it is frankly crazy that for 20 million kids who rely on free and reduced lunch, they are banned from drinking whole…”

“it is frankly crazy that for 20 million kids who rely on free and reduced lunch, they are banned from drinking whole milk as a matter of Federal law. Whatever basis in science or public health might have ever backed this up has long since been debunked. I am glad that we are finally correcting this error today. Why should kids have access to whole milk at school? Well, at least three reasons. Number one is nutrition. The latest science shows that whole milk actually is probably better for you nutritionally than other kinds of milk because it is less processed. As for saturated fats, science shows that the body processes dairy fats differently than other kinds of fats. The second reason is satiation. Whole milk is simply more filling. For a program that is designed to make sure kids don't go hungry, that might be a relevant consideration. Moreover, when kids are not full from their lunch, then they might be more inclined to grab things that are a lot less healthy. The third is taste. A lot of kids simply hate the taste of skim milk. I don't blame them. I hate it, too. I love the taste of whole milk. What is particularly crazy is that while schools can't serve whole milk, they are allowed to serve sugary strawberry and chocolate milks, which are a lot worse for kids.”