As expected, “milk and alternatives” — along with “meat and alternatives” — has been scrubbed as a standalone food group in the latest iteration of Canada’s iconic food guide. The new guide, the first update in more than a decade, recommends vegetables and fruits make up half of any meal and that Canadians choose protein foods that come from plants — not animals — most often. The old food guide recommended two to three servings of meat or alternatives a day, and two to three servings of milk or alternatives daily. The Dairy Farmers of Canada have insisted there is “no scientific justification to minimize the role of milk products” in the Canadian diet and that two to four servings of milk products daily can help promote bone and muscle health. “Lumping milk products together with other protein foods will lead to inadequate intakes of important nutrients,” the Dairy Farmers of Canada’s Isabelle Neiderer, a registered dietitian, said in a recent statement.

Source: National Post January 22, 2019 15:11 UTC