Newly released federal dietary guidelines will benefit dairy, even as work remains to be done, according to the National Milk Producers Federation. Miquela Hanselman, NMPF’s regulatory affairs manager, says, “Dairy is in a good place." The latest update to the dietary guidelines includes a recommendation of three dairy servings in the Healthy U.S. Eating pattern, in keeping with past guidelines. The guidelines also recognize that Americans aren’t consuming enough dairy to meet their nutritional needs. The guidelines also recommend milk, yogurt, and cheese in the first-ever healthy eating patterns geared toward infants and toddlers ages birth to 24 months. Meanwhile, Edge Dairy Farmer Cooperative, one of the largest dairy co-ops in the country, urged Congress to help broaden the milk options children have in school. Cooperative President Brody Stapel states, “the agencies and scientific review committee missed an opportunity to address and include the newer, available science on the nutritional benefits from fuller-fat dairy and a wider array of products.”

Dairy groups welcome new dietary guidelines, outline needed improvements