Milk and other dairy products have always been important parts of school lunch and school breakfast programs. They will continue to play an integral role in these programs in the future, although new regulations may force changes in the type or nutritional profile of dairy products included in the meals. I laid out the basics of the final rule on school meals in a blog post right after the final rule was released. I followed with a second entry that focused on the nutrient requirements of the final rule. This final post in the series will examine the potential impact on specific dairy foods. Fluid Milk The final rule requires that eight ounces of fluid milk be offered with all breakfasts and lunches. This continues the central role that milk has always had in school meals. However, one of the changes required by the final rule would allow only low-fat and fat-free white milk and fat-free flavored milks to be part of the reimbursable meals. The U.S. Department of Agriculture believes that this limitation will help lower saturated fat and calories in the updated school meals. Processors will see an increased demand for fat-free flavored milk, rather than higher fat versions of flavored milks. Yogurt and Cheese Yogurt and cheese will continue to be allowed as meat alternates in school meals in recognition of the strong protein contribution of these foods. In the proposed rule that was released in 2011, USDA recommended requiring one serving of a meat or meat alternate in school breakfasts. However, due to concerns about increased costs of the program, USDA did not carry this requirement over into the final rule. Meat or meat alternates, including cheese and yogurt, may be served as part of school breakfasts, but they will not be required. While there are no specifics set by the final rule on the nutrient content of yogurt or cheese, the rule did highlight lower-fat and lower-sodium cheeses that are available to schools. Ice Cream/Frozen Desserts There is generally no allowance in school meals for desserts, including ice cream. In some cases, ice cream manufacturers have made frozen juice bars that met the school meal requirements for a serving of fruit. The new regulations will encourage more whole fruit and discourage juice, which could reduce the number of schools that purchase frozen fruit bars. In addition to all of these specific requirements on dairy foods, the nutrient limits discussed in my last entry, "School Meals: Nutrient Restrictions," could indirectly affect dairy products being used in school meals. With the push to lower calories, saturated fat and sodium, schools will begin looking for options that contain fewer of these nutrients in order to meet the limits set by the new regulations. So even though there is no limit set for sodium in cheese, schools will probably prefer to purchase lower-sodium cheeses to help meet their weekly sodium goals.