It's something of a blast from the past, following the initial introduction of milk in schools in 1937, which ran for 30 years before being stopped because of concerns about cost and questions around the health benefits of milk.
But now it's back, albeit in a slightly truncated form, and it comes at a time when milk is becoming viewed as an increasingly precious commodity.
A survey commissioned by Consumer NZ this year found 91 per cent of the 1000 people surveyed felt they were paying a high price for milk. Statistics New Zealand data showed the average price for two litres of standard milk in November was $3.67 - 16.1 per cent higher than in November 2009.
But the potential health and social benefits of the scheme are also highly worthy of consideration.
It's no secret this country faces a significant issue around child poverty, and many of our youngsters are not getting a proper breakfast before heading off to school.
It's been debated, dissected and tossed around as part of the recent election campaign, and yet we appear no closer to actually coming up with a resolution.
Milk in schools won't fix it either. However, what it will do is make a difference to some of those kids who aren't getting their nutritional needs met at the start of the day.
It can't take the place of a full proper breakfast, but it's a start and is deserving of acknowledgment.
We can only hope the Northland trial proves positive enough that Fonterra proceeds with plans to roll out the programme nationally, and that it inspires the government and social agencies to take a hard look at what can be done around child poverty.
That would be a win-win for all concerned.
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