Pennsylvania Republicans champion food dye ban, whole milk in schools

Pennsylvania lawmakers are reviving efforts to overhaul school nutrition rules, introducing new legislation that would ban artificial food dyes in public schools and allow districts to serve whole and 2% milk.

The legislation is part of a broader push tied to U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) campaign, which has called attention to the health risks of ultra-processed foods and synthetic additives.

State Rep. Natalie Mihalek, R-Allegheny, introduced the Healthy Student Act to prohibit schools from serving foods that contain six petroleum-based synthetic dyes. The ban would apply to meals, snacks and vending machine offerings during the school day and would take effect in July 2027. 

Mihalek said the proposal was inspired by watching what her own children were buying in school cafeterias.  

“The time has come to clean up our food supply,” Mihalek stressed in a statement.  

“For too long, we have been bombarded with chemicals, dyes and inferior artificial ingredients only to suffer serious health consequences from ingesting the foods that are readily available to us. Since the federal government has failed to protect us, we have a duty to act in the state legislature to protect the people of Pennsylvania.” 

Similar bills in previous sessions have failed to advance, but Mihalek pointed to growing public skepticism about processed food as a potential catalyst for the new bill to gain traction. 

Led by Kennedy, a new report has called on the National Institutes of Health to prioritize more studies on the long-term impacts of processed food. Some existing research has suggested links between synthetic dyes and behavioral issues in children, such as hyperactivity or anxiety.  

Lawmakers backing Mihalek’s measure say the potential health risks are not worth it when safer alternatives exist. 

Critics of the package, however, argue the proposed restrictions are unnecessary given existing federal regulations.  

Aaron Riggleman, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry, argues the legislation would provide “no meaningful improvement in public safety outcomes” because “the ingredients have already been reviewed and thoroughly vetted by the FDA.” 

Meanwhile, state Sen. Michele Brooks, R-Mercer, is pushing to lift federal restrictions that currently bar schools from offering whole and 2% milk. 

Her bill, the Whole Milk in Pennsylvania Schools Act, would give districts the option to purchase and serve locally produced whole milk. 

“Thirty years ago, 35 years ago, kids weren’t nearly as obese,” Brooks said. “And we drank whole milk. There was literally cream on top of the milk. I think there’s other ways that we can work on [this.]” 

She also says children routinely discard nonfat milk, leading to food waste and nutrition gaps. 

The bill, currently in the Senate Education Committee, has previously garnered support from the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau but has seen limited progress in past legislative cycles.