Defending the Integrity of Real Food: Why Clear Labels Matter in the Fight for Dairy and Beef

At AGPROfessionals, we support the hardworking families who drive America’s beef and dairy industries. Their products nourish the nation with tradition and unmatched nutrition. Unfortunately, some multinational food corporations promote plant-based imitations disguised as milk and meat. Despite clear regulatory definitions, plant-based alternatives made from nuts, seeds, and grains, such as almond milk, oat milk, or vegan “cheese,” continue to exploit dairy terms on their packaging. This causes consumer confusion and dilutes the market integrity of real dairy products.

That’s why we back renewed bipartisan efforts at the federal level to restore honesty and transparency in food labeling. The DAIRY PRIDE Act of 2025 is one such law that protects the exclusive use of dairy terminology for products made from real milk.

Truth in Labeling: The DAIRY PRIDE Act

Reintroduced in July 2025, the Defending Against Imitations and Replacements of Yogurt, Milk, and Cheese To Promote Regular Intake of Dairy Everyday (DAIRY PRIDE) Act seeks to enforce long-standing FDA standards of identity for dairy products. The DAIRY PRIDE Act is sponsored by Wisconsin Senator Tammy Baldwin, Idaho Senator James Risch, Maine Senator Susan Collins, Vermont Senator Peter Welch, Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar, Maine Senator Angus King, Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman, New York Senator Kirstin Gillibrand, Idaho Senator Mike Crapo, South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds, Nebraska Senator Pete Ricketts, Kansas Senator Roger Marshall, and Minnesota Senator Tina Smith.

The DAIRY PRIDE Act mandates the FDA:

• Enforce existing labeling laws for milk, cheese, and yogurt.
• Reserve dairy terms strictly for products from hooved mammals.
• Issue clear enforcement guidance within 90 days.
• Report back to Congress within two years on its progress.

This bipartisan bill is supported by a coalition of dairy state senators and industry groups, including the National Milk Producers Federation, Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), and the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).

Fake Meat & Dairy: Misleading Claims, Inferior Nutrition

At the heart of this debate is nutritional honesty. The marketing behind oat milk, almond milk, or meat-like substitutes such as Impossible™ and Beyond™ products implies nutritional equivalency, or even superiority, over animal-sourced foods. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Even organizations like the American Academy of Pediatrics warn against using plant-based “milks” as a substitute for dairy in growing children due to the lack of essential nutrients.

Real Dairy and Beef Offer:

• Complete proteins with all essential amino acids
• Naturally occurring vitamin B12, crucial for neurological health
• High levels of calcium, potassium, and vitamin D
• Bioavailable iron and zinc in beef, key for growth and immune function

Plant-Based Imitations:

• Often require artificial fortification to match real dairy’s nutrient profile
• May contain additives, gums, and oils and other products to simulate the taste and texture of real dairy and meat products
• Lack essential nutrients found naturally in dairy and meat
• Since they are an imitation product, they are more processed than the wholesome foods they imitate

The Bigger Threat: Corporate Agendas to End Animal Agriculture

The battle over labeling is not merely semantic; it is ideological. Major food-tech companies and so-called “advocacy” backed startups have openly declared their intention to “end animal agriculture.” These companies are not allies of agriculture. They are actively working to dismantle the very livelihoods that feed rural America. Their goal? Replace real meat and milk with synthetic, lab-grown, or plant-derived substitutes.

Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, their aggressive lobbying efforts aim to reframe animal agriculture as outdated, unethical, or environmentally harmful. What’s needed now is legislative backbone, consumer education, and unwavering industry advocacy to combat this agenda.

Defend Farmers, Defend the Label

At AGPROfessionals, we understand what’s at stake and have been advocating for honest labeling of dairy products for a number of years. Clear labeling is not just about protecting terminology, and keeping ideological companies from hijacking words, it is about defending truth, transparency, and the hardworking families behind real food.

Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) had this to say about the DAIRY PRIDE Act:

“Words matter. Nutrition matters. Truth in labeling matters. For years, plant-based products have used dairy terms, despite lacking the same nutrients, science, and trust that come with real milk.

These imitators continue to confuse consumers and capitalize on the decades of investment dairy farmers have made in building a safe, nutritious, and sustainable food system, all without playing by the same rules.

The DAIRY PRIDE Act would require the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to enforce its own definition of dairy. Products that don’t come from a cow, or another lactating mammal, shouldn’t be labeled milk, cheese, or yogurt.

We’re committed to supporting efforts that protect the integrity of real dairy and the farmers behind it.”

Support the DAIRY PRIDE ACT

At AGPROfessionals, we urge Congress to pass the DAIRY PRIDE Act. We would also like to see them expand similar protections for beef and other animal proteins. We support policies that protect consumer trust, rural economies, and the values of American agriculture. Let’s call “milk” what it is, a product of the cow, not a concoction of emulsified nuts.

Contact your elected officials and urge them to support the DAIRY PRIDE Act of 2025. Stand with the farmers and ranchers who produce the safest, most nutritious food supply in the world.

Because when we protect the label, we protect the people behind it.

Links

AGDaily article HERE

Dairy Herd Management article HERE

Bill Text HERE