When I recently questioned the wisdom of Jamie Oliver’s current campaign to get flavored milk out of schools, I did so with a lot of trepidation. No one likes the amount of sugar in flavored milk, but I felt it important to draw attention to the other side of the debate, i.e, the many respected organizations (and the many parents) who believe flavored milk has a legitimate place in kids’ diets. In light of the heated disagreement among so many well-informed, well-intentioned people, it seemed to me that J.O. might have picked a less controversial target for his campaign. But most of all, I wondered why no one seemed to be talking about taking the more moderate step — as some school districts already have — of getting dairies to lower the sugar content in the milk (and get rid of other objectionable ingredients like high fructose corn syrup and artificial flavors and colors) before we decide to ban flavored milk altogether.
My flavored milk post went viral, and while many readers shared my views, many others took me to task. I was prepared to ruffle some feathers but I still breathed a sigh of relief when I read a recent article by Dana Woldow, San Francisco school food reformer and creator of PEACHSF.org, entitled “Chocolate Milk in Schools: Ban It, Keep It or Change It?,” In the piece, Dana comes out essentially right where I did, suggesting that we modify flavored milk rather than eliminating it entirely, and she backs up her arguments with many more facts and figures than I had at hand when I wrote my own post. Reading it felt like needed reinforcements had arrived!
Here’s a sneak preview to whet your appetite:
The one thing that everyone agrees on is that there is no agreement. Each side trots out their own medical professionals, dietitians or fervent parent supporters to explain why their view is the only rational one. Tempers flare, sound bites replace facts, and everyone digs in, determined not to yield an inch.
When school food reformers play fast and loose with the facts, it tarnishes the credibility of everyone working towards better school food. There is a legitimate case to be made for reducing the added sugar in school milk without having to resort to misrepresentation. When advocates who share a common interest in fighting child obesity are at each other’s throats over whether chocolate milk is a tasty way for kids to get important nutrition, or the Drink of Satan, the whole school food reform movement suffers, and that hurts kids.
But there is a middle ground.
Whether you already have an opinion about the flavored milk wars or have yet to make up your mind, I suggest you take a look at Dana’s piece. Then come back to TLT and let me know what you think.
Get Your Lunch Delivered and never miss another Lunch Tray post! Just “Like” TLT’s Facebook page or “Follow” on Twitter and you’ll also get bonus commentary, interesting kid-and-food links, discussion with other readers AND you’ll be showing TLT some love. ♥♥♥ So what are you waiting for?
Anna says
I am all about lobbying the dairy industry to lower the sugar content. We’ve also had some preliminary talks around pushing for tetra packed milks such as those Horizon uses to avoid so much waste.
I’ve checked out this debate because of the funding crisis, but thanks for keeping it going, Bettina.
Rachael Warrington says
I agree with both of you. If you take chocolate milk away, you will have most of the kids not drink any milk. They need milk in so many ways. We also serve yogurt (not in the squeeze tubes, thank you very much) and they won’t touch it because it does not glow in the dark! As a food service manager I am on a balance bean between kids, parents, and the food reformers. I am still shouting that the number one way to change the kids weight issue in Amercia is to change the parents. Learn to cook, learn to cook eay and you will make a stong investment into your own children’s lives.
Cook!
Karen Frenchy says
I have one simple question: why drinking milk (regular or flavoured) during lunch?
I may sound a bit “extreme” but in my opinion, water should be the only beverage served during a meal, in schools. If schools/parents are worried about “calcium intake”, kids can get it through other dairy products… Plus, what about the children who are lactose intolerant? (I’m not talking about allergies, but simply children whose stomachs get upset after drinking/eating dairy products on a daily basis)
The more I read and get information about school lunches (or food industry in general), the more I worry about the future and health of our children.
Sorry if I’m off topic… didn’t get much sleep last night -_-
Bettina Elias Siegel says
Not off topic at all! Just on the side issue of lactose intolerance, I know that in my district (and presumably in others) lactose-intolerant kids can request that the district supply on a daily basis a lactose-free beverage with their meals. It’s always amazing to me that in such a huge district (we’re the 7th largest in the nation) they can accommodate all these food allergy issues, but they seem to do a good job of it.
jenna Food w/ Kid Appeal says
This is just another “kids lose” story. Experts don’t agree. Food service directors don’t agree. Parents don’t agree. School boards don’t know which direction to go.
So in all that fighting, indecision and inaction, kids are still suffering. they are still eating and drinking too much sugar and factory made food.
the middle ground scenario has kids losing too. there are already too many kids sick with preventable diseases.
kids can’t wait for us to wean off of sugar, salt and factory made food. it’s too late for weaning off. too many kids are already diabetic, obese, have heard disease. these life long chronic conditions are preventable.
they can be prevented if kids eat real food most of the time. processed food for breakfast and lunch washed down with flavored milk is not “most of the time.” in fact that is eating fake food most of the time. when a child eats fake food most of the time their health will suffer. at some point. in childhood, in teen-age years, in their early 20s or in some decade there after.
the human body does not know how to run cellular functions on factory made food. nor does it know how to filter out the amount of chemicals, sugar and refined vegetable oils a highly processed food diet involves.
should we let another group of 5 year olds enter the public school system to be sold on sugary, salty factory made food-like substances and then wean them off of i?. how much disease in young children could be prevented if we just gave more kids more real food NOW and stopped expecting their small developing brains and bodies to be able to detox all the garbage our food industry feeds us?
dana says studies of milk consumption when flavored milk is absent do not exist: what about looking at milk consumption in other countries who do not offer flavored milk to school kids.? how many of those kids choose milk vs other options? if it is lower than US averages, how many of those kids are calcium deficient? or are those less milk drinking populations still healthy because calcium and other nutrients are provided and consumed in other non-dairy items? another problem is US cafeterias is that even when districts (like mine) offer fresh fruits and vegetables every day, they are not widely accepted. Most kids still skip them on the lunch line. so it is harder for a US kid to get calcium from vegetables because the vast majority don’t eat vegetables.
Justin says
I want to say that I’m glad that there are folks like you and Dana out there who are willing to look at the problem more objectively and even suggest a middle-of-the-road approach. While there’s something to be said for going “whole hog” when it comes to activism, those types of all-or-nothing approaches rarely end up as the end solution (nor do they usually look at the whole picture).
As a kid, I drank mostly flavored milk in school, not because I thought white was objectionable, but because the QUALITY of the white milk was objectionable. It often tasted “a little off” due to handling and off-flavors picked up from the packaging and often, it was even outright sour because it was being kept around too long. Flavored milk turned-over faster, so it was often fresher, and the flavor covered anything objectionable. No matter what, the milk never tasted nearly as good as either white milk or homemade flavored milk from home.
Some thoughts I’ve had that I’d love to see part of the discussion are:
– What research says milk should be the drink of choice in lunch lines anyway? Are we just assuming the long-standing belief as fact? Are there enough benefits to serving milk (calcium, vitamins, calories, etc.) to outweigh the bad things (cholesterol, fat…that we remove from it, lactose and casein intolerance, etc.)? Would some other beverage be a better choice?
– Can we use less and/or more natural sugars? Does it even have to be as sweet as it is to still taste more enjoyable than plain milk?
– Could the food service control the amount of sugar/flavoring by providing portioned syrup dispensers instead of pre-flavored milk?
– Could the food service provide milk dispensers instead of cartons or plastic bottles to improve the quality of the white milk so it’s more appealing?
– Much of the milk sold is fortified–meaning we add vitamins and minerals to it that “growing bodies” supposedly need. Since we’re adding to it anyway, could we add them to some other beverage or maybe just correct the vitamin content in the rest of the meal?
– People often pass over manufactured beverages like Kool-Aid because they assume it’s “just junk” while they readily choose “flavored water” or diet soda because it sounds healthier. Aside from choice of sweetener (flavored water uses Splenda) and food coloring, the beverages are essentially the same thing. More importantly, when prepared to package directions, Kool-Aid has less sugar than regular soda and I’d wager less sugar than fruit juice. If it were made with no food colorings (or natural ones) and prepared with LESS sugar than the package directions (it still tastes great that way…I do it myself), a “flavored water” or Kool-Aid like drink might be a good and tasty alternative to milk and plain water and it could be fortified in much the same way.
Nicola says
The problem with lowering the sugar content or changing the type of sweetener is that it doesn’t change taste preferences. It still sets the taste buds up for wanting sweet tasting products. In California they have just passed a law (AB2084) that will no longer allow any beverages with added sweeteners (natural or artificial) which will include flavored milk. So if it’s not going to be available in child care there is no reason to introduce it in elementary schools. Plus, many schools have eliminated it already, saw an initial dip in milk consumption and then it went back up again.
Nicola says
Sorry – forgot to mention that AB 2084 refers to beverage standards in licensed child care.
Bettina Elias Siegel says
Nicola – thanks for commenting here. Is it true that the milk consumption went back up to former levels after the flavored milk was removed? Because, at least anecdotally, I’ve never heard of that happening and I do know of at least one district that eliminated flavored milk and then brought it back eventually.
jenna Food w/ Kid Appeal says
michelle stern is active in her district’s school reform initiatives (CA). they took choco milk off at the beginning of this year district wide and said the same thing. initial drop, then went back up.
Bettina Elias Siegel says
Went back up to the exact same level as before? I’d be curious to have her comment here, if you want to refer her over here.
Michelle (What's Cooking with Kids) says
No, it isn’t back to exactly the same place. But white milk consumption has increased a ton – it is the only option, along with water.
But the key topic that we aren’t talking about is the fact that if we serve it, we imply that it’s a good choice. I wish we could be comfortable in the position of setting a good example and serving what we want them to drink. There should be plain milk and water – both choices that are good for kids. Limiting the sugar content in flavored milk may be a step in the right direction for schools, but will the industry do the same for what is available in stores? It’s almost like a parent endorsing spinach brownies, but then not understanding why their kids think brownies are healthy to eat from their local bakery or cafe.