By Miquela Hanselman, MPH, Senior Director, Regulatory Affairs
This year has seen great wins for 2% and whole milk — the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, which allows schools to offer milk of any fat level for student meals, was signed into law Jan. 14, and USDA recently released a final rule to implement the new law through national nutrition programs. Through years of advocacy, the National Milk Producers Federation was also able to regain support for dairy products of all fat levels in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
While the spotlight has been on whole milk in 2026, it’s important not to relegate a longtime fan favorite: flavored milk.
Flavored milk, such as chocolate and strawberry, contains the same 13 essential nutrients vital for growth and development as unflavored white milk. Children who drink flavored milk consume more milk overall and have higher intakes of vitamin D, calcium, potassium, and other nutrients. Studies show consumption of flavored milk is associated with better overall diet quality without any adverse impact on weight.
Roughly 7% of fluid milk sales in the United States is school milk, and about two-thirds of that is flavored milk. Studies have shown that food waste in schools is reduced when flavored milk is offered in schools, and kids have consistently given flavored milk higher ratings versus unflavored milk.
While flavored milk is an excellent source of nutrients, it can sometimes draw criticism because it contains added sugar. The 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans take a more aggressive stance on limiting added sugars than in previous years, stating that each meal should contain no more than 10 grams of added sugars. This could potentially affect the dairy products served in school meals, such as flavored milk and yogurt.
But flavored milk contributes just 4% of added sugars in the diets of children ages 2 to 18. And dairy processors have voluntarily worked for more than a decade to reduce added sugars in flavored milk in schools by 50%. Beginning with the 2025-2026 school year, 37 fluid milk processors made the Healthy School Milk Commitment, agreeing to provide flavored milk cartons with no more than 10 grams of added sugar per 8-oz. serving. Now, flavored school milk on average has only 7 to 8 grams of added sugar per serving, lower than ever before.
Flavored milk is a popular and tasty option for people of all ages, especially children. Though added sugars may sound concerning, the American Academy of Pediatrics has said “a beverage such as flavored milk provides a good example of the balance needed to limit added sugars and yet promote nutrient-rich foods.”
The dairy industry has made great strides providing the same great tasting flavored milk products with less sugar than before, and that’s something worth celebrating.
This column originally appeared in Hoard’s Dairyman Intel on May 21, 2026.
