Baldwin Leads Bipartisan Group Calling on Biden Administration to Protect Dairy Industry from Plant-Based Imitators

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) led a bipartisan group of colleagues in calling on the Biden administration to protect America’s dairy industry and ensure that plant-based imitation products are not equated in upcoming dietary guideline changes. Baldwin, joined by Senators James Risch (R-ID), Susan Collins (R-ME), and Peter Welch (D-VT), urged the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to carefully consider any changes to the upcoming Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) that could add plant-based imitation products into the dairy category, despite their nutritional differences.

“We are concerned about potential efforts to add plant-based imitation products to the dairy group within the DGA,” wrote the Senators in a letter to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack.  “Existing research has shown that plant-based alternatives are indeed not nutritionally equivalent to dairy.”

The Senators expressed concerns that adding imitation products to the dairy category equates the products nutritionally, despite imitation products often containing lower protein and added sugars. Updating the DGA by adding imitation products to the dairy category without sound evidence would only further consumer confusion about the nutritional differences between dairy and ultra-processed plant-based alternatives.

“We believe that it is important that consumers understand the nutritional value of the food and beverages that they choose to purchase and consume, and that the federal dietary guidelines they may turn to reflect evidence-based science. As you consider potential updates to the DGA pertaining to dairy, we ask that you ensure sound scientific evidence to support any statements which nutritionally equate plant-based alternatives with real dairy,” the Senators continued.

Senator Baldwin has been leading the charge to crack down on imitation products using dairy’s good name and working to prevent consumer confusion about the nutritional value of dairy versus imitation products. Senator Baldwin leads the DAIRY PRIDE Act to combat the unfair practice of mislabeling non-dairy products using dairy names by requiring non-dairy products made from nuts, seeds, plants, and algae to no longer be mislabeled with dairy terms such as milk, yogurt, or cheese.

A full version of this letter is available here and below.

Dear Secretary Becerra and Secretary Vilsack,

We write in support of ensuring science-based recommendations pertaining to dairy in the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). As you await the report of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, we ask that in developing the DGA, you insist on sound evidence to support any changes to current dairy recommendations.

We are concerned about potential efforts to add plant-based imitation products to the dairy group within the DGA. Apart from fortified soy, the current DGA does not consider plant-based alternatives to be nutritionally equivalent to real dairy. Existing research has shown that plant-based alternatives are indeed not nutritionally equivalent to dairy. These products may be lower in protein, may contain added sugars, and may not contribute other nutrients in similar amounts to dairy. In our understanding, there is also not currently strong evidence that plant-based alternatives provide the same beneficial effects on chronic disease risk compared to real dairy.

Moreover, we would be concerned with any update to the DGA that furthers consumer confusion about the nutritional differences between dairy and ultra-processed plant-based alternatives. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has acknowledged this concern in their Draft Guidance for Industry on the Labeling of Plant-Based Milk Alternatives, noting that consumers do not understand nutritional differences between dairy and plant-based alternatives, and may incorrectly believe they are healthier than milk or comparable in nutrition. FDA subsequently recognized the nutritional inferiority of plant-based products in their guidance and provided recommendations for disclosing their nutritional inferiority on the products’ labels. To this end, we have called on the FDA many times to enforce dairy product standards of identity to help consumers distinguish between real dairy and plant-based imitation products.

We believe that it is important that consumers understand the nutritional value of the food and beverages that they choose to purchase and consume, and that the federal dietary guidelines they may turn to reflect evidence-based science. As you consider potential updates to the DGA pertaining to dairy, we ask that you ensure sound scientific evidence to support any statements which nutritionally equate plant-based alternatives with real dairy.

We look forward to continuing to work with you to improve the health and nutrition of Americans.

###