By Patti Rigby, Carbon School District Nutritional Director
Flavored milks are at the forefront of discussion again. Students enjoy the flavor option but the downside of flavored milk is the added sugar. What many don’t realize though is that an estimated 12 grams of sugar is naturally occurring in plain white milk. With flavoring, it is closer to 24. In 100% fruit juice there is a comparable amount of sugar to flavored milk.
The best part is that our students are twice as likely to choose milk if flavored options are available. The USDA requires that we offer two milk choices: unflavored at 1% while flavored must be fat free. We feel this is a fair regulation that succeeds in increasing milk consumption for our students. We love offering the choices kids look forward to!