Purpose

The bill aims to clarify and expand milk offerings for students participating in Minnesota’s national school lunch program (and school breakfast program). It ensures a wider range of milk options, including lactose-reduced choices, to meet nutritional standards and parental requests, while aligning with USDA requirements.

Main Provisions

• Milk offerings for program participants
  • Schools must offer a variety of fluid milk, including flavored and unflavored options.
  • Options may include organic or nonorganic whole, reduced-fat, low-fat, and fat-free fluid milk.
  • Non-dairy beverages that are nutritionally equivalent to fluid milk and meet the USDA standards may also be offered.
• Lactose-reduced milk for lactose-intolerant students
  • If a nonpublic school or district receives school lunch aid or participates in the school breakfast program and there is a written request from a pupil’s parent, the school must make lactose-reduced milk available.
  • Lactose-reduced milk may be: milk fortified with lactase (in liquid, tablet, granular, or other form) or milk to which Lactobacillus acidophilus has been added.
• Bulk serving from large containers
  • Notwithstanding any other law, local ordinance, or local regulation to the contrary, a school may pour or serve portions of any product required by this section from a large container at the time and place the pupil is being served.

Changes to Existing Law

• Explicitly clarifies that schools must provide a variety of fluid milk options, including lactose-reduced and lactase-fortified milk for lactose-intolerant students, upon a parent’s written request.
• Allows addition of Lactobacillus acidophilus to milk as an option for lactose-intolerant students.
• Establishes authority for bulk pouring from large containers during meal service, overriding conflicting local rules to streamline service.

Notable Details

• The provisions apply to national school lunch program participants and school breakfast program participants, with specific duties placed on nonpublic schools and districts receiving program aid.
• Safety and nutrition requirements reference standards established by the United States Secretary of Agriculture.

Implementation Considerations

• Schools must track parental requests for lactose-reduced options and ensure availability of lactase-fortified or probiotic-enriched milk as specified.
• Districts may need to adjust purchasing, labeling, and storage practices to accommodate lactose-reduced and lactase-fortified products and to implement bulk serving from large containers.

Relevant Terms - National school lunch program - School breakfast program - fluid milk - lactose-reduced milk - lactose intolerant - lactase - Lactobacillus acidophilus - nondairy beverages - nutritionally equivalent - organic - whole milk - reduced-fat - low-fat - fat-free - United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) standards - large container - not withstanding - nonpublic school - district - written request