How The ‘Make America Healthy Again’ Commission Is Already Impacting The Food Industry 

With Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the helm, President Donald Trump’s ambitious “Make America Healthy Again Commission” is already impacting the food industry.

The “MAHA Commission,” established in an executive order, asks for a strategy to “Make Our Children Healthy Again” in about six months from now — but changes from the private sector already seem to be in motion.

According to Robert Moskow, a food industry analyst for investment bank TD Cowen, food and beverage brands will proactively start to remove artificial flavors and preservatives that they believe won’t pass new standards. 

Some big-name restaurants have already publicized their health swaps. For example, the food chain Steak ‘n Shake famously announced last month that it would start cooking its fries in beef tallow. RFK has promoted beef tallow over vegetable and seed oils. Sweetgreen and Blue Collar Restaurant Group have also replaced seed oils. There was also RFK signaling to McDonald’s, the largest fast food chain on the globe; he said after his swearing-in that the corporation should be “incentivized” to use beef tallow. 

Americans will also likely see changes at Mondelēz International, one of the largest snack companies in the world, which owns brands like Oreo, Ritz, Chips Ahoy!, Clif Bar, Cadbury, and others.

Mondelēz CEO Dirk van de Put said on Tuesday at a conference that due to pressure from RFK, the company would likely swap out some ingredients and food dyes it currently uses in favor of its European recipes. Europe has stricter standards for its food. 

Van de Put added that consumers would see price hikes over the changes. 

Though companies seem willing to make adjustments to items like dyes and preservatives, Moskow said there would be strong push-back over seed oils since they are so inexpensive and versatile. Constituents of the agribusiness industry will likely present studies at upcoming hearings to make the case that the oils are safe, the food analyst said. 

Kennedy has also signaled incoming changes for SNAP, which are government-funded food benefits, and the federally-subsidized school lunch program. Those changes could impact the food industry based on the scope of those programs. In fiscal year 2023, the government spent more than $112 billion on SNAP, and about $17 billion on the National School Lunch Program. 

Trump’s Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said last week that she would work with RFK to reform SNAP. 

“I look forward to working with Bobby Kennedy as we figure out, do we have the healthiest choices — so when a taxpayer is putting money into SNAP, are they okay with us using their tax dollars to feed really bad food and sugary drinks to children who perhaps need something more nutritious,” Rollings told the press. 

USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins welcomed RFK Jr.’s help to reform SNAP to cut “bad food and sugary drinks.”

“When a taxpayer is putting money into SNAP, are they okay with us using their tax dollars to feed really bad food and sugary drinks to children who need something more… pic.twitter.com/5Vh0aMHIzG

— American Values ???? (@AVPac_US) February 16, 2025

“We shouldn’t be giving 60% of the kids in schools processed foods that are making them sick,” RFK said during his confirmation hearing. 

Speaking to his HHS staff earlier this week, RFK addressed the department’s ambitious agenda and underscored the challenges Americans are currently facing.

“In the U.S., six out of every ten adults have at least one chronic disease, and four in ten have two or more,” Kennedy said. “The U.S. has the highest age-standardized cancer incidence rate among 204 countries in the world.”

“Asthma and autoimmune diseases are far more common in the U.S. than in any other part of the world,” he continued. “Autism now affects one in every 36 kids, a more than four-fold increase over past decades. The sperm counts and testosterone are down about 50% in American boys, and our girls are reaching puberty six years earlier than historical generations.” 

RFK stressed during his address that his goal is to earn back the public’s trust and accomplish that through transparency. Trust in institutions and scientists has significantly dropped since COVID. 

“I want the agencies under HHS to earn that back, that level of global trust,” Kennedy said. “And what is the path to public trust? The path to trust is always through transparency. Transparency is the foundation of science, and it is the foundation of democracy.”