Pennsylvania Farm Bureau Pushes Whole Milk in Schools

By Blake Jackson

Pennsylvania Farm Bureau recently held a press conference at Vale Wood Farms to encourage school districts across the state to bring 2% and whole milk back to cafeteria menus.

The event brought together dairy industry leaders, farmers, nutrition professionals, and school food service representatives to discuss the importance of offering fuller-fat milk options to students.

Among the speakers were Pennsylvania Farm Bureau Vice President Tommy Nagle, Vale Wood Farms Director of Business Development Carissa Itle-Westrick, dairy farmer and Pennsylvania Dairy Promotion Program Chair Lolly Lesher, Allied Milk Producers Chairman Dave Myers, and Hollidaysburg Area School District Food Services Director Betsy Snyder.

Local dairy princesses Emily Farabaugh and Kimber Hough also provided milk samples during the event.

Organizers said the timing is important because many school districts are currently reviewing food service contracts for the 2026-27 academic year.

“Currently, school districts across Pennsylvania are working on reviewing and preparing to sign their food service contracts for the 2026-27 academic year, and it is incredibly important that school districts across the state make the decision to offer whole milk in our school cafeterias once again,” Nagle said.

“We appreciate our local school boards for their commitment to student health and well-being, and we encourage them to put 2% and whole milk back on the menu. This is a simple step that benefits both our children and our local agricultural community.”

“We want to start a conversation. For a couple of years, dairy farmers were excited about the opportunity to provide a fuller fat milk product to school children, and now we have that ability,” Itle-Westrick said.

“We are really excited for Farm Bureau to become more engaged in this conversation and to really encourage children to get that really good tasting dairy experience in school, so at the end of the day we can build dairy consumers for life.”

Photo Credit: istock-cagkansayin