Thompson Applauds USDA Rule for School Milk

BELLEFONTE, Pa. – U.S. Representative Glenn ‘GT’ Thompson today applauded the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for issuing a rule to provide schools more flexibility in implementing federal nutrition standards.

“This commonsense rule will allow schools more options while providing nutritious varieties of milk,” said Rep. Thompson, Vice Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee and Chairman of the Nutrition Subcommittee. “If schools have more options, students are going to drink more milk, which was once a staple in the diet of our student populations. I applaud Agriculture Secretary Purdue for taking this important action to ensure students are receiving meals that are both nutritious and satisfying.”

Over the past eight years, milk consumption in schools has dramatically decreased as a direct result of the so-called Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010. In response, Rep. Thompson and U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) authored H.R. 4101, the School Milk Nutrition Act of 2017, which permits schools to serve 1-percent fat, both flavored and non-flavored varieties.  

The actions taken today by USDA will benefit nearly 99,000 schools and institutions that feed 30 million children annually through USDA’s school meal programs.