We have exciting news to share: After years of advocacy, plant-based milk options are now permitted in school cafeterias across the United States, including here in Minnesota! This victory is a major step forward for students, farmed animals, and our shared planet, made possible by dedicated advocates for dietary freedom and a compassionate food system.
We want to acknowledge the work that made this victory possible, highlight the role of Compassionate Action for Animals’ Wholesome Minnesota program in expanding plant-based options for students, and let you know how to build on this momentous accomplishment by exercising your right to request plant-based milk and advocate for more plant-based options in schools.
A Historic Win for Students and Animals
On January 14, 2026, provisions of the bipartisan Freedom in School Cafeterias and Lunches (FISCAL) Act were enacted through the National School Lunch Program, taking effect immediately. For the first time since the school lunch program’s establishment in 1946, participating schools are now permitted to offer plant-based, nondairy milk options that are nutritionally equivalent to fluid dairy milk. Additionally, schools are required to honor requests from parents or guardians stating that a student needs a nondairy milk option due to a disability, including lactose intolerance. Previously, schools were only required to honor requests with a note from a state-licensed health care professional or dietitian.
This change is a historic win for students, animals, and the planet, ending the harmful 80-year “cow’s milk monopoly” in schools. As many as one-third of Americans are lactose intolerant and nearly half express interest in reducing their consumption of dairy and other animal products, including disproportionate numbers of Black, Indigenous, and People of the Global Majority. Improving access to plant-based milk for students who want it will help reduce the enormous greenhouse gas footprint of U.S. school meals and remove countless animals from a food system that treats them like things, not beings.
Celebrating the Advocates Who Made It Happen
This victory was made possible by years of advocacy led by Switch4Good, Animal Wellness Action, and the Center for a Humane Economy, as well as legislative champions in Congress and coalition supporters like the nationwide Plant-Powered School Meals Coalition. Jodi Gruhn, director of Wholesome Minnesota, is a member of the coalition and is co-chairing its state policy working group in 2026.
Following the bill’s passage in the House on December 15, Switch4Good founder and plant-powered Olympian, Dotsie Bausch called it a watershed moment in school nutrition. She said: “By supporting the inclusion of plant-based milk in the school lunch line, the House has shown that progress, compassion, and science can triumph together. As an Olympic athlete, I’ve spent my life fighting for what fuels health and human potential, and giving children access to healthier options is a victory that will ripple for generations. This is more than policy; this is a powerful step toward a healthier world.”
We congratulate everyone who helped achieve this progress and look forward to building on our movement’s momentum to do even more for students and farmed animals.
Three Ways You Can Take Action Now
Having plant-based options available in schools is an important step toward building a world where all animals — human and nonhuman — can thrive. But fully realizing the potential of this victory depends on students, parents, guardians, and school food operators knowing how to take advantage of their new options. Here’s what you can do to help.
1. Request Plant-Based Milk for Your Student
If you’re a parent or guardian of a K-12 student, you can submit a written request to your school stating that your child needs a nondairy milk option due to a disability (including lactose intolerance). Your request must identify the disability, specify the substitute (such as soy milk, water, oat milk, or juice), and come from a parent, guardian, state-licensed health care professional, or registered dietitian.
Schools are required to honor these disability-related requests. Parents may also submit requests for non-disability reasons, but schools are not required to fulfill them. The Plant-Powered School Meals Coalition has assembled a guide to help you exercise your right to request plant-based milk.
2. Advocate for Plant-Based Milk in Your School
Whether you’re a student, parent, guardian, school food operator, or concerned community member, you can advocate for your school to make plant-based milk available to all students on the lunch line, not just by request.
Wholesome Minnesota has resources to make it easier for advocates and school nutrition staff to make plant-based options available. If you want help approaching your school’s administration, you can use the contact form at the bottom of our website to get in touch. The Plant-Powered School Meals Coalition also offers this guide for school food operators to comply with the new law.
Even if you’re not directly involved in your school’s food service program, remember that your local school board is an elected body that listens to voters. You can use this tool to learn what district you live in, then follow up with school board members to let them know why making plant-based milk options available matters to you and countless other Minnesotans.
3. Support Plant-Based School Meal Options Statewide
Finally, you can support efforts to make fully plant-based meals available to students across Minnesota in addition to plant-based milk. Last year, Minnesota lawmakers introduced legislation to give all students access to a daily plant-based meal option on request. You can sign the letter we’re sending to legislators to show your support for this bill — and if you want to get more involved, use the contact form at the bottom of the Wholesome Minnesota website and we’ll be in touch.
Building a More Compassionate Future
No matter what you do, we want to thank you for doing your part to help students access healthier, more animal-friendly foods in schools. Together, we can do more than just make plant-based options available. With thoughtful, compassionate action, we can help make plant-based food the norm — and create a food system that’s better for everyone.
