Chocolate Milk Could Be Pulled From NYC Schools: Report

NEW YORK — New York City officials may soon re-moo-ve chocolate milk from school cafeterias, a new report says. Health concerns have pushed the Department of Education to consider taking the lunchtime treat off school menus, making it udderly impossible for students to find, the New York Post reported Sunday.

The Big Apple would follow other large cities including San Francisco, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. in ditching chocolate milk, which contains almost twice as much sugar as plain milk.

"The thinking is that these kids are already getting too much sugar, why are they getting it in their milk?" an unnamed Department of Education source told the Post.

City schools are required to provide at least two kinds of low- or non-fat milk, the DOE's website says. Individual schools can choose to get rid of chocolate milk on their own, an option many schools have already exercised, according to the city's Department of Health.

Steering schools away from flavored milk can be a double-edged sword — a 2014 study indicated that it reduced kids' intake of calories and sugar but also calcium and protein, according to the Los Angeles Times. The move also led to a drop in milk sales and 29 percent of white milk being thrown away, the Cornell University study reportedly found.

DOE spokesperson Will Mantell would not explicitly confirm that the department is considering giving chocolate milk the boot. But he said the agency "continuously review(s) our menu options for nutrition & whether kids enjoy them."

"Our priority is the health and well-being of our students, and every day, we offer a variety of healthy, delicious, and free meal options that exceed USDA standards," Mantell said in a statement. "No decision has been made about chocolate milk."