Expanding Access to Non-dairy Milk in Schools  

Public schools are one of the nation’s largest food purchasers and providers, meaning they play a significant role in the health of students and our environment. Plant-based options, including non-dairy milk, are increasingly popular with students, are environmentally friendly, and improve student health and equity. Recent data also shows that nearly 70% of Americans agree that children should have access to nutritious plant-based beverages at school, especially the Black, Asian and Latino children who have high rates of lactose intolerance. Yet up until now, it has been very difficult for students to access plant-based milk options in their cafeterias.  

Provisions in a newly passed bill in Congress is helping change this. Soon, school districts will be able to offer nutritionally equivalent non-dairy milk options on the lunch line to any student and will be required to offer a non-dairy milk option to any student whose parent makes a request based on a disability, which includes lactose intolerance. The bill, which was signed into law by President Trump in January 2026, is a huge win for students and their families.  

A large coalition of partners including Friends of the Earth U.S., the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, and other members of the Plant Powered School Meals Coalition are behind this win. The group has worked together for years to advocate for this policy through the Plant Powered School Meals Pilot Act (formerly the Healthy Future Students and Earth Act) led by Representative Nydia Velázquez. This act would establish a program that provides healthy, culturally inclusive, sustainable plant-based meals for public school students, in addition to expanded access to non-dairy milk in public schools. 

For far too long, students have been denied access to nutritious plant-based beverages at lunch. Prior to the passing of this new law, schools were only required to offer plant-based milk to students who provided written documentation of a disability from a doctor, and they weren’t allowed to offer non-dairy options to students without parental notes.  

This placed an undue burden on students with specific dietary needs, such as communities of color who have high rates of lactose intolerance. The National Institutes of Health reports that the vast majority of Asian and American Indian people in the U.S. are lactose intolerant, and between 50% and 80% of African American and Hispanic people are.  

We appreciate Congress’ leadership in ensuring equitable access to nutritionally appropriate beverages at school and look forward to continuing this work.