NYC Reps Have A Cow Over Adams' Chocolate Milk Ban

NEW YORK CITY — Turns out there is crying over spilled milk — at least when it's the chocolate variety on New York City's school menus.

A bipartisan group of New York City's congressional representatives this week tried to moooo-ve Mayor Eric Adams to reconsider a potential chocolate milk ban.

Children who drink flavored milk consume more nutrients than non-milk drinkers, among other health benefits extolled in a letter written and signed by the delegation — and published on the National Milk Producers Federation's website.

"We strongly urge you to continue offering children the choice of flavored milk each and every
day in New York City schools," they wrote. "Thank you for your attention to this important matter."

He took a stance against chocolate milk in 2019, when he posted a video implying it contains unhealthy amounts of added sugar — which he illustrated by pouring teaspoon after teaspoon over a table. Better to ban it from school lunches, he advocated.

"While this may sound extreme to some people, the stats say differently," he said in the video.

But the congressional group — which included Democratic Rep. Grace Meng and prominent Republicans Elise Stefanik and Lee Zeldin — argued that most flavored milk contains less sugar than the cap

the cap recommended by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

More than two-thirds of milk served in schools is flavored, and represents a key way for children to get nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D and potassium, the letter argues.

"Studies have also shown that flavored milk consumption is not associated with weight gain or even a higher total daily sugar intake in children," the letter states.

Expanding flavored milk in schools not only would help children, but also support "the dairy farmers, producers, and agriculture partners across New York," the letter states.