Wednesday, 15 July 2026

Latest from Food Politics: What has MAHA accomplished to date?

Background (numbers refer to citations at the end) The Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) commission set an important goal, albeit one ironically similar to Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move” campaign: end childhood chronic ...
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By Marion Nestle

What has MAHA accomplished to date?

Background (numbers refer to citations at the end)

The Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) commission set an important goal, albeit one ironically similar to Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move” campaign: end childhood chronic disease.[1] Unfortunately, hallucinated references in the report suggested that at least some of it had been written by AI, thereby detracting from its scientific credibility.[2]

Trying to achieve this goal is surely difficult within the context of drastic staff reductions in the HHS and USDA agencies responsible for food policy, and of the deliberate undermining of public confidence in basic public health measures like water fluoridation and vaccination; these actions will harm child health, not improve it.

Also, policies of EPA (approving PFAS, encouraging coal-burning power plants), of USDA (eliminating farm-to-school programs [3], cutting school meal budgets), and of presidential executive orders (glyphosate[4]) directly oppose MAHA goals.

MAHA promises

In September 2025, the commission outlined its strategies.[5]  Here are its main promises about food, and my understanding of what has been done about them to date.  [Stat lists non-food ones as well.  I wrote about its report here]

  1. Issue the 2025-2030 dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs)[6] and new food guide.[7] Accomplished. I wrote about them here.  They have some strengths (eat real food; limit ultra-processed foods), but are undermined by errors, inconsistencies, and ideological interpretations of inconvenient science. More recent recommendations of the American Heart Association better reflect scientific consensus.[8]
  2. Eliminate petroleum-based food colors. Accomplished, but voluntarily. To date, 27 food companies have agreed to replace these dyes with those derived from plant sources.[9]  Voluntary could mean that the change won’t last; these foods will still be highly processed.
  3. Establish post market review of chemical additives in food. In progress, but no rulemaking or regulation as yet.
  4. Define ultra-processed foods (UPFs) for research and policy. In progress, but rumored to be held up.
  5. Develop a front-of-pack nutrition information logo. In progress, but rumored to be held up. RFK Jr has stated that the FDA is working on one with traffic light colors. We haven’t seen it yet.
  6. Close the GRAS (generally recognized as safe food additive) loophole. In progress, but no rulemaking as of yet. [10]   It is hard to know how the FDA will do this, given that it has lost 20% of its staff.[11]
  7. Improve nutrition and safety standards for Infant Formula. In progress.[12]  Operation Stork Speed is supposed to review nutrition standards and test for heavy metals, but says nothing about microbial safety, a huge issue right now.  The FEA is checking for heavy metals, and isn’t finding much.  A program to monitor foods in general for heavy metals has been announced.  Microbial safety?  I’m not hearing much about stronger regulation of infant formula.
  8. Promote breastfeeding. Nothing on this. 
  9. Improve quality of food served to veterans. In progress. Presumably, this will happen as a result of the dietary guidelines, but I’ve not seen rules.
  10. Serve healthy food in hospitals.  In progress. A letter was sent to hospitals saying that federal benefits would be withheld if they did not comply.[13] And HHS has just urged hospitals to take ‘Make Hospital Food Healthier’ pledge.  This is voluntary, and it is not clear whether or how tit will be enforced. Also, medical schools have been asked to increase hours devoted to nutrition instruction, and some have agreed. Again, this is voluntary.[14] 
  11. Set guidelines to limit the direct marketing of UPFs to children. Nothing on this.
  12. Promote whole, healthy foods across its 16 nutrition programs. In progress. Presumably, this will happen as a result of the dietary guidelines, but no rules yet.
  13. Encourage state SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) waivers.  Accomplished (maybe). The USDA has approved waivers for 23 states as of July 2026.[15]  These ban the use of federal SNAP dollars for sugar-sweetened beverages and, in some states, candy and other sweets. Will the waivers improve the diet and health of participants?  We don’t know yet.  But since July 2025, SNAP enrollments have dropped by 10% overall and by much greater percentages in some states; losses include more than 800,000 children in the 13 states that report these data.[16]  Advocates expect the waivers to make participation even more difficult.[17]  Furthermore, the state SNAP waivers are being litigated, and some have been blocked.  The waivers may not last.
  14. Provide MAHA Boxes to SNAP participants. I’ve heard nothing on this yet.
  15. Food Deregulation: Remove restrictions on whole milk sales in schools, allowing full-fat dairy options alongside reduced-fat alternatives. Accomplished.[18]  Will this make a difference to kids’ health?  I doubt it.
  16. Education campaign based on the updated dietary guidelines. Nothing on this yet.  NOTUS reports: “the White House killed an RFK Jr. ad campaign. He can blame Kristi Noem: Trump officials abruptly canceled the health campaign focused on processed food and diabetes over cost and image concerns.

Comment

This administration counts much of the work in progress as MAHA wins,[19] but the actual accomplishments seem limited.  The promises most likely to make a real difference to child health—regulation of ultra-processed foods and marketing to kids, better food in schools, a major education campaign—are either held up, ignored, or still waiting for rulemaking.

When I said something like this to Calley Means at the Aspen Ideas Festival (see yesterday’s post), he pointed out that MAHA has had only had a year and a half to get things done, whereas advocates like you, Marion, had been trying to do these things for decades and failed.  We did fail, but MAHA has (or had) the power. I hoped they would be able to use it .  Their inability to do is is disappointing, as is their taking credit for actions they haven’t yet taken.

References

[1] The MAHA Report: Make Our Children Healthy Again: Assessment. May 2025. https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/WH-The-MAHA-Report-Assessment.pdf.

[2] Jacobs P.  Trump officials downplay fake citations in high-profile report on children’s health.  Science.  May 30, 2025.  doi: 10.1126/science.zmgabo5.

[3] Brown M.  USDA cancels $1B in local food purchasing for schools, food banks. Politico, March 10, 2025. https://www.politico.com/news/2025/03/10/usda-cancels-local-food-purchasing-for-schools-food-banks-00222796

[4]  The White House.  Promoting The National Defense by Ensuring an Adequate Supply Of Elemental Phosphorus And Glyphosate-Based Herbicides.  Executive Orders, February 18, 2026. https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2026/02/promoting-the-national-defense-by-ensuring-an-adequate-supply-of-elemental-phosphorus-and-glyphosate-based-herbicides/

[5] MAHA.  Strategy Report: Make Our Children Healthy Again. September 2025.   https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/The-MAHA-Strategy-WH.pdf

[6] HHS, USDA.  Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030.  chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://cdn.realfood.gov/DGA.pdf.

[7] USDA.  Real food wins.  https://realfood.gov/.

[8] Lichtenstein AH, Khera A, Anderson CAM, et al. 2026 Dietary Guidance to Improve Cardiovascular Health: A scientific statement From the American Heart Association. Circulation. 2026;153(18):e1285-e1295. doi: 10.1161/CIR.0000000000001435.

[9] FDA.  Tracking Food Industry Pledges to Remove Petroleum Based Food Dyes. June 16, 2026.  https://www.fda.gov/food/color-additives-information-consumers/tracking-food-industry-pledges-remove-petroleum-based-food-dyes.

[10] HHS.  HHS Secretary Kennedy Directs FDA to Explore Rulemaking to Eliminate Pathway for Companies to Self-Affirm Food Ingredients Are Safe.  March 10, 2025.  https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/revising-gras-pathway.html

[11] Akst J.  FDA hiring 2,200 people to staff up after last year’s DOGE cuts. BioSpace, June 24, 2026.  https://www.biospace.com/fda/fda-hiring-2-200-people-to-staff-up-after-last-years-doge-cuts

[12] HHS.  HHS, FDA Announce Operation Stork Speed to Expand Options for Safe, Reliable, and Nutritious Infant Formula for American Families.  March 18, 2025. https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/operation-stork-speed.html.

[13] HHS Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.  Letter to Hospital/CAH Providers.  Hospital nutrition service obligations in light of updated federal nutrition guidelines.  March 30, 2026.  https://www.cms.gov/files/document/qssam-26-03-hospital-cah-original-release-2026-03-30.pdf.

[14] HHS.  Secretary Kennedy Announces Historic Development in Nutrition Accreditation Standards, New Medical School Pledges. June 8, 2026.  https://www.hhs.gov/press-room/secretary-kennedy-announces-historic-development-nutrition-accreditation-standards-new-medical-school-pledges.html

[15] USDA. SNAP food restriction waivers. Undated.  https://www.fns.usda.gov/snap/waivers/foodrestriction

[16] Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. SNAP Tracker: People Are Losing Food Assistance as the Republican Megabill Is Implemented. June 22, 2026.  https://www.cbpp.org/research/food-assistance/snap-tracker-people-are-losing-food-assistance-as-the-republican-megabill

[17] Food Research & Action Center.  SNAP food restriction waivers. Undated. https://frac.org/snap-restrictions

[18] USDA.  Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act of 2025 – Implementation Requirements for the National School Lunch Program.  January 14, 2026.  https://www.fna.usda.gov/nslp/wmfhka-implementation

[19] HHS.  Celebrating Big Wins of the Trump Administration.  Undated.  https://www.hhs.gov/hhs-big-wins-maha/index.html

[20] Wallace-Wells D.  Has the MAHA Movement Given Up?New York Times, July 3, 2026. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/03/magazine/maha-movement-survival-rfk.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

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Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University, Emerita

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Latest from Food Politics: What has MAHA accomplished to date?

Background (numbers refer to citations at the end) The Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) commission set an importan...