Milk Doesn't Need Warning

The Toledo Blade
February 3, 2006
Excerpt

PITTSBURGH quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and Seattle's Matt Hasselbeck will continue a Super Bowl tradition by appearing with milk mustaches in those "Got Milk?" commercials during Sunday's game of games.

Got Milk? is one of the oldest and most successful advertising campaigns. Success invites imitators, and the ad has inspired hundreds of similar slogans.

If a group called the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine gets its way, the next iteration will be, "Got a Warning Label?"

PCRM went to court in Washington, D.C., in a case that could sour milk's image as a healthy food. The lawsuit against milk suppliers and retailers seeks to put health-warning labels on milk cartons.

...

PCRM may, indeed, be backing the warning label because of a broader agenda that promotes "vegan" lifestyles. Vegans are vegetarians who don't eat anything from animals.

PCRM argues that there is no reason for older children and adults to get a milk mustache because all the nutrients in milk are available in other foods.

In reality, however, many people who cut out milk don't replace it with good sources of calcium, protein, and other nutrients. And no other food has milk's nutritional wallop in such a convenient and inexpensive package.

Milk does not need a warning label, which could discourage consumption of a food that is nearly perfect for many people. The dairy industry, however, needs to focus less on those milk mustache ads and more on ads that educate consumers about lactose intolerance, so everyone is fully aware of the problem.

This article has been provided in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107. This material is provided without profit for research and educational purposes. Prior to republication of this material in its entirety we recommend contacting the source for appropriate permissions. Alternatively, publication of an abstract with a link to the originating source page to see the full text is generally allowed.