WASHINGTON ―President Donald Trumpis set to sign bipartisan legislation on Wednesday, Jan. 14, to allow the nation's schools to offer whole milk and 2% milk, reversing Obama-era restrictions that limited options for students to fat-free or low-fat milk.
Several members of Congress and milk advocates will join Trump in the Oval Office for a 2 p.m. ET signing ceremony for the Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act,which passed both legislative chambersunanimously in late 2025.
The White House confirmed the signing exclusively to USA TODAY. Trump's signature comes after Health and Human Services SecretaryRobert F. Kennedy Jr.on Jan. 7 released new dietary guidelines that flip the traditional food pyramid to emphasize full-fat dairy, protein and "healthy fats." Kennedy, announcing the changes, declared, "We are ending the war on saturated fats."
More:Got (whole) milk? USDA uses a mustachioed Trump to push whole dairy
Under the new law, schools participating inthe National School Lunch Program‒ which provides meals for nearly 30 million students, including 21 million at free or reduced prices ‒ can offer students whole 2% milk or nondairy beverages that are "nutritionally equivalent" to milk, in addition to reduced-fat and fat-free milk.
The law overhauls school milk standards set inthe Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, signed by former President Barack Obama, that limited milk in schools to reduced-fat options in a push to fight the nation's childhood obesity epidemic.
"President Trumpwill sign into law a fix to the failed Obama policy that foolishly banned whole milk from public schools and barred children from the essential nutrients needed to grow, learn, and stay healthy," White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers said. "This is common sense and great news for America's children, dairy farmers, and parents who deserve choice, not big government mandates."
Rogers added that Trump is "delivering on his commitment to Make America Healthy Again!"
Drink up, America.#DrinkWholeMilk🥛pic.twitter.com/eemI31G1wx
— Dept. of Agriculture (@USDA)January 12, 2026
More:RFK Jr. overhauls dietary guidelines, calls for less sugar, more meat
The new law permits both flavored and unflavored milk and organic and nonorganic milk and applies to school breakfasts and lunches. In addition, the new law will allow parents to sign off on their children receiving a substitute for milk due to dietary restrictions because of disability. The current law requires a written statement from a doctor.
Since unveiling the dietary guidelines, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has encouraged Americans to drink whole milkthrough a new promotional campaignfeaturing Trump sporting a milk mustache.
An image posted by the USDA on X, accompanied by the hashtag "#DrinkWholeMilk" shows Trump looking into the camera while leaning against his Oval Office desk with a glass of milk.
Reminiscent of the "Got Milk?" ads of the 90s and 2000s, Trump can be seen in the apparently edited image with a line of milk on his upper lip beneath the title, "The Milk Mustache Is Back. Drink Whole Milk."
Previous nutrition guidelines suggested minimizing or avoiding full-fat dairy and all types of fat, including healthy and saturated. The new guidance recommends three servings of full-fat dairy a day but caps saturated fat at 10% of daily calories per day.
Eating too much high-fat dairy can easily add up to the daily 10% threshold, according to health experts. But fat is not always a bad thing.
Whole dairy contains more nutrients (including protein, calcium, phosphorus and vitamins A, B and D), more essential omega-3 fatty acids and helps people feel full for longer. Reduced-fat dairy options, on the other hand, offer many of the same nutrients while contributing less saturated fat to your diet.
Contributing: Mary Walrath-Holdridge of USA TODAY
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Trump to sign bill allowing schools to serve whole and 2% milk
