SOY MILK VERSUS CHEESE MILK.

In writing the last post, I happened upon the Frequently Asked Questions for the food package in the Women's, Children, and Infants nutritional programs. They have, it turns out, a whole section on milk. And if it weren't so sad, it would be very, very funny:

Milk Questions1. Are soy and rice beverages WIC-eligible?Currently, soy and rice-based beverages are not approved substitutes for cow’s milk in the WIC food package. All milks authorized in the WIC Program must meet the Food and Drug Administration’s standard of identity for milk. Soy and rice beverages do not. 2. Is chocolate milk WIC-eligible?Unflavored and flavored milk both meet Federal requirements for use in the WIC Program. All authorized milks must also be pasteurized and contain 400 International Units of vitamin D and 2000 IU of vitamin A per quart of low-fat or fat free milk. State agencies are not obligated to include all WIC-eligible foods on their State food lists. Therefore, not all State agencies may include flavored milk on their WIC food lists.3. Is yogurt WIC-eligible?WIC regulations do not allow the substitution of yogurt for milk in the WIC food packages. Only cheese is an approved substitution for milk.

So you can't substitute soy or rice milk for milk. But chocolate milk is acceptable and, barring that, cheddar cheese. And we wonder why we're a pudgy nation.