The National Milk Producers Federation points consumers to several studies showing the benefits of dairy.
A University Of Saint Andrews study shows milk outperforms water for hydration because lactose helps hold fluid in the stomach for longer. Another study from the American Academy Of Pediatrics recommends that children under 5 drink only milk and water that study specifically warns parents away from plant-based beverages.
National Milk says research from the United Nations also shows U.S. dairies are improving their sustainability and lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
Dairy farmers and community members are hoping a grassroots push can get whole milk back into schools. A petition on the issue has received more than 55 hundred signatures in two months and the petition organizer plans to deliver it to the USDA during the third meeting of the dietary guidelines advisory committee.
The group hopes the petition will lend support to a bill introduced by Pennsylvania Representative G.T. Thompson that would allow whole milk in schools again. Another campaign called 97-milk is working to educate consumers that whole milk is still only 3 percent fat making it 97 percent fat-free.