The Great American State Fair Goes MAHA?

The Great American State Fair kicked off “MAHA Monday” by spotlighting the Make America Healthy Again movement, featuring healthier food choices and wellness speakers, hosted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The dedicated day is a testament that MAHA isn’t going anywhere, proving that you can make healthy choices even at a state fair.

“Today is MAHA Day, at the National Mall, here at the state fair. We know we’ve got a chronic disease problem in this country, [we are] the least healthy country of all the developed nations in the world,” Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said Monday morning at the fair.

She’s right, according to the National Institute for Health Care Management: “approximately 6 in 10 Americans live with at least 1 chronic disease, leading to significant health and economic burdens.” Roughly 90% of the $4.5 trillion spent on U.S. health care in 2022 was spent on chronic disease and mental health issues.

SNAP Reforms

“[Health and Human Services Secretary] Bobby Kennedy and I together are providing waivers, so that SNAP dollars don’t go towards junk food, making sure that we’re getting real food, the farmers and ranchers back to the middle of the dietary guidelines,” Rollins continued.

Congress isn’t on board with reforming the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The House of Representatives shot down this amendment in April when Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, tried to add it to the 2027 Farm Bill. According to USDA, 11% of all SNAP funding is spent on soda and candy. In 2025, $8.9 billion in SNAP funds—taxpayers’ money—were spent on soft drinks alone.

Both Rollins and Kennedy have championed state-level waivers to limit soda purchases with SNAP funds. While it didn’t make it into the farm bill, some members are pushing for it to be added to the third reconciliation package due in August.

The MAHA Menu

Rollins believes farming and agriculture are the solution to making sure that we get “real food onto our plates.”

While fair food can be fun, Freedom250 added a MAHA element. In a separate food vendor station, hidden in the back, they highlighted three local restaurants in D.C. where the ingredients are local, the food is made in house, and they seem to be getting close to “MAHA.” While the fries aren’t made with beef tallow, life is about balance.

Don’t worry, you can still get your pizza, corndog, and ice cream, but you can also check out a chicken sandwich from Chop Shop. The chicken comes from a family farm in Northern Virginia, and they make everything themselves.

A Packed Summer Fair

The Great American State Fair has received backlash online for having low attendance or the food and decorations being lackluster, so we went to see for ourselves. On a Monday afternoon, in the summer heat, most states’ booths were full; some of the best, like Florida, even had a line.

If you want to ride the free Ferris wheel, overlooking the nation’s capital, it is worth the 30-minute-long line.

Monday’s speaker panel consisted of topics surrounding healthy food, exercise, and mental health in your everyday life. According to Freedom250, “if you’re curious about feeling better, living longer, and doing it the American way, this is the place to be.”

You can catch the next MAHA Monday, next week on July 6, but the local vendors will be there until the fair closes on July 10.