Got Milk? Why?
To receive government subsidies for feeding their students, US schools must serve dairy milk. These subsidies come from taxpayer money yet the World Wildlife Fund shows that more than 45 million gallons of milk are thrown away annually, wasting more than $300 million in taxpayer money each year.
Only 32% out of 130 students surveyed regularly drink the school-provided milk with their lunch.
“The school should offer more than one free drink option especially since there are a lot of people who are lactose intolerant” Erica Sarpong, junior, said.
22% out of 130 students surveyed are lactose intolerant. However, statistics from twenty-eight civil rights and health care groups including Progressive Democrats of America and the NAACP
show that 80% of Black and Latino people, more than 90% of Asians, and more than 80% of Indigenous Americans are lactose intolerant, compared to the 15% average of White people.
Some students are just confused by the addition of milk in the first place as the common entrees of burgers, nachos, and pizza are uncommonly served with milk.
“It doesn’t go with the food,” Alison Melendez, junior, said.
Other students appreciate the option.
“The school already provides water fountains so being provided with a different drink for lunch brings variety,” Jason Ruiz, sophomore, said.
Although many still widely consider dairy to be healthy, thus making sense from a nutritional standpoint, not all experts agree. The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine says that milk and other dairy products are the top source of saturated fat in the American diet. Saturated fats contribute largely to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease. Some students also reject the idea of nutrition.
“The sugary-ness of the flavoring completely overrules any health benefits from it. Jason Mika, senior, said.
Another complaint is that the milk is sometimes spoiled. Over 50% of students surveyed said they had received spoiled milk at some point.
“There have been multiple occasions in which I have received milk that either doesn’t smell right, tastes sour, or has
chunks in it,” Jonah Francois, junior, said.
Some students also question the need for milk in general. Millions of cows in the United States remain in factory farms despite the continuously decreasing demand for dairy milk nationwide according to food naviagtor.com.
These dairy farms can also be detrimental to the environment with how much they pollute water, soil, and even
air from methane admission, overfeeding, GMOs, and improper removal of manure according to sentientmedia.org. Our World in Data shows that global farmland use could be reduced by over 75% – an area larger than the US, China, EU, and Australia
combined – and still feed the world comfortably.
According to OpenSecrets, dairy is “likely only still in business due to the dairy trade groups giving millions to members of Congress and lobbying for influence over the nation’s nutrition policy”, or the “Agricultural Act” which requires the government to purchase any surplus dairy products to maintain a floor on milk prices.
In spite of the concerns, some students enjoy the milk simply becuase it’s “free.”
