Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-Bellafonte, is pictured in the Oval Office after President Donald Trump signed Thompson’s Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025 into law.

Whole milk will be an option for the nation’s school lunchrooms after a decade of work by Rep. Glenn “GT” Thompson.

On Wednesday, President Donald Trump signed into law Thompson’s Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025. The House of Representatives approved the legislation in December following Senate approval in November. The Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act provides schools with the flexibility to offer flavored and unflavored whole and 2% milk options, helping ensure children receive the nutrition they need to grow, thrive, and succeed in the classroom.

“I have worked for over a decade to restore whole milk to our school cafeterias, which have been limiting healthy choices for students, but that changes today, thanks to President Trump signing this into law,” said Thompson, Chairman of the House Committee on Agriculture. “Whole milk is an essential building block for a well-rounded and balanced diet, and students should have the option to choose the milk they love.”

In 2010, Congress passed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act which amended nutrition standards in the School Lunch Program. Among the changes, the law mandated that flavored milk must be fat free within the program.

The law, along with lower participation in the program, led to a decrease in milk consumption in schools since 2010, Thompson said, which also affects dairy farm families and rural communities across the nation.

To help encourage nutritious options in the School Lunch Program and increase consumption, Thompson introduced legislation – H.R. 4101, the School Milk Nutrition Act of 2017 – that would give schools the option to serve 1% flavored milk varieties.

In May 2017, the U.S. Agriculture Department announced a rule that allowed schools to receive waivers for low-fat (1%) flavored milk, rather than only fat-free, which is the essence of H.R. 4101.

On January 29, 2019, Thompson introduced H.R. 832, the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2019. The legislation built Thompson’s H.R. 4101 and the USDA’s rule by allowing whole milk (both unflavored and flavored) to be offered within the School Lunch Program.

“Pennsylvania Farm Bureau members have waited over a decade to see progress made on getting whole and two percent milk back in schools. Today, the House had a historic vote for the dairy industry by passing the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025,” Chris Hoffman, Pennsylvania Farm Bureau president, said when the House passed Thompson’s bill in December. “We are thrilled to once again offer students one of the most nutritious and wholesome beverages to support a healthy childhood development. We look forward to restoring nutritious beverage options in schools and growing the current pool of fluid milk consumers. We urge President Trump to swiftly sign this bill into law.”