Bulletin of the IDF N°531/2024 - The state of milk and milk products in school programmes around the world - Contributing to global child nutrition and development

Publication description

Milk and milk products have been a staple in schools for many years, often featured as part of dedicated school milk programmes or integrated into broader school feeding initiatives. These programmes are recognized as crucial social protection mechanisms, offering vital nutrition and education to children while simultaneously supporting economic and social development for the broader community. Such broad and interrelated benefits clearly align with the United Nations’ global Sustainable Development Goals.

Collecting comprehensive global survey data is essential in order to understand programme operations, evaluate efficacy, identify gaps and track changes over time. To address these needs, the International Dairy Federation has provided insights over the past 31 years, with the present report compiling results from the 2023 IDF Survey. This report details the current scope of school milk and feeding programmes that include milk and milk products, including design, distribution, management and resilience during crises like COVID-19.

There is increasing recognition of the importance of evidence-based nutrition for school feeding programmes that emphasize healthy eating patterns. This bulletin includes an updated literature review on the nutritional impact of school milk, but research in this field remains limited. As a result, an umbrella evaluation framework for school feeding programmes that include milk has been developed to encourage future implementation research.

Keywords: Milk; Milk products; School; School milk; School milk programmes; School feeding programmes; Dairy; Children; Nutrition

Cites this content as: 

International Dairy Federation. (2024). The state of milk and milk products in school programmes around the world - Contributing to global child nutrition and development. (Bulletin of the IDF N° 531/2024). https://doi.org/10.56169/HXUZ6019