The low-fat 1% chocolate milk including the low-fat flavored milks are making a comeback in schools and are now being reintroduced through the National School Lunch program, School Breakfast program and Smart Snacks. Due in part to educators who have come to the idea that the health benefits of low-fat 1% chocolate milk, and the vitamins and minerals associated with it, outweigh the drawbacks from some extra sugar.
“Dozens of U.S. public schools have banned chocolate milk only to reconsider after milk consumption dropped among students,” Said Rachel Johnson, a University of Vermont nutritionist who toured Canada in support of the country’s dairy industry last year to discuss the benefits of chocolate milk.
However, some educators disagree and have booted the choice of chocolate milk from the cafeteria’s menu, such as the district officials in San Francisco who decided it was a no go. Officials tested the idea in five schools over the past school year and found that in two of them, there was no decrease in the number of milk cartons kids put on their trays, and there was only a slight dip in the other three.
Ultimately, the new rules allow for students to have more flexibility and help schools address the nutrition, taste and health needs of the students they served, linking the chocolaty beverage to improved bone health, especially in children and adolescents.
Sources
Corbin L., (2017). Chocolate Milk back on LAUSD Menus Despite Some Parental Concerns. KABC-TV.
Retrieved from
http://abc7.com/food/chocolate-milk-back-on-lausd-menus-despite-concerns/2004098/
Johnson R.K., Frary C., Wang M.Q. The nutritional consequences of flavored milk consumption by school-aged children and adolescents in the United States. J Am Diet Assoc. 2002; 102: 853-856.
Kline A., (2017). School Meal Flexibilities for School Year 2017-2018. USDA FNS Memo Code SP 32-2017.
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https://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/school-meal-flexibilities-sy-2017-18.
McMahon, T. (2012). Sweet Redemption: Chocolate Milk Making a Comeback in Schools. National Post, a division of Postmedia Network Inc.
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National Dairy Council and School Nutrition Association. The School Milk Pilot Test. Beverage Marketing Corporation for National Dairy Council and School Nutrition Association. 2002.
Tucker, J. (2017). Chocolate Milk Booted Off the Menu at SF School Cafeterias. San Francisco Chronicle.
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