Tom Tiffany: “My bipartisan amendment ensures that none of the funds made available by this bill will go toward funding a rule that…”

“My bipartisan amendment ensures that none of the funds made available by this bill will go toward funding a rule that will ban flavored milk, like chocolate milk, in schools. This would ensure that all types and flavors of milk are available to schoolchildren. This summer it was reported that the USDA is considering banning chocolate milk from elementary and middle schools. USDA issued a proposed rule in February that would set new nutrition standards for school meals. If implemented, the new standards proposed could limit the amount of flavored milk, like chocolate and strawberry, in high schools while children in elementary and middle schools would be restricted to a variety of unflavored milk. This rule would affect roughly 30 million students who participate in the school meal programs. According to the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, removing flavored milk from schools resulted in a 62 to 63 percent reduction in milk consumption by kids in kindergarten through fifth grade, as well as a 50 percent reduction in sixth through eighth grades. Milk is full of rich nutrients that support bone growth and development, and millions of children enjoy drinking it. We should not be funding rules that would limit our children's access to delicious and nutritious products like milk. I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this bipartisan amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.”