Most of agriculture applauds the second MAHA report
After the first 72-page “Make American Healthy Again” report—which was compiled to discover the reason for America’s health decline and specifically chronic childhood disease—was released in May, much of the agriculture industry voiced frustration with the conclusions. Some even demanded corrections before the final MAHA report recommendations were released.
After several months of delays, the MAHA Commission, which is chaired by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has released a second report, called the “Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy.” This updated plan includes more than 120 initiatives, and the contents are more pleasing to agriculture as a whole.
“The Trump administration is mobilizing every part of government to confront the childhood chronic disease epidemic,” Kennedy said in a MAHA press release. “This strategy represents the most sweeping reform agenda in modern history—realigning our food and health systems, driving education and unleashing science to protect America’s children and families. We are ending the corporate capture of public health, restoring transparency and putting gold-standard science—not special interests—at the center of every decision.”
The key focus areas of the updated strategy include restoring science and research; historic executive actions; process reform and deregulation; plus public awareness and education and private sector collaboration.
Under Kennedy’s strategy, ultra-processed foods were targeted as contributing to poor health. The strategy recommended front-of-package nutritional labeling for consumers to understand what they are buying. The measures proposed were voluntary instead of mandatory.
The strategy also stated the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans should be updated to promote whole foods and limit processed options. Just like the initial report, artificial food dyes were singled out as a health hazard. The Food and Drug Administration has been directed to limit or prohibit petroleum-based food dyes in the food supply.
A seat at the MAHA table
“Today’s MAHA Commission report is another historic milestone for our country and a testament to President Trump’s leadership and commitment to Make America Healthy Again,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins. “America’s farmers and ranchers are at the heart of the solution—alongside doctors, parents and communities—to fight chronic disease and protect future generations. Under this administration, we are not just talking about healthy outcomes; we are delivering them by securing voluntary commitments to remove artificial food dye from major brands, providing technical assistance to states interested in restricting junk food and soda from SNAP, and providing growers with new tools to maintain and improve soil health, including the introduction of a regenerative farming practice pilot program. Together with our partners at HHS and EPA, we are charting a new course, strengthening the health of our families, and ensuring the United States leads the world with the safest, strongest and most abundant food supply.”
The tone of the second MAHA strategy is noticeably different from the initial report in May. This is partly due to the MAHA Commission offering agriculture leaders a seat at the table after the first report was released and listening to their concerns before redrafting the second strategy.
“While agriculture’s voice was widely unheard in the initial MAHA report, we thank the administration for listening to our concerns before releasing the ‘Make Our Children Healthy Again’ strategy,” said National Pork Producers Council President Duane Stateler. “We all want to help our children to be healthy, yet there is still more work and understanding for this goal to best be accomplished.”
Members of the House and Senate Ag Committee, who expressed concern after the first report was released, were relieved the MAHA Commission was receptive to conversations with agricultural leaders.
“We appreciate the efforts of the MAHA Commission to enhance engagement with agricultural producers and stakeholders in developing these updated recommendations,” read a statement from House Committee on Agriculture Chairman Glenn Thompson (R-PA) and Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Chairman John Boozman (R-AR). “America’s farmers are stewards of the land, producing our nation’s food while protecting the environment. Their expertise is essential in shaping sound, science-based policies that maintain a safe and healthy food supply. We must continue to prioritize innovation and ensure access to practical tools that enable our hardworking producers to meet growing production demands while maintaining a strong commitment to environmental stewardship. We look forward to working with the administration to implement policies that advance these goals while addressing the challenges and realities encountered by farmers, ranchers and producers.”
Pivoting to pro-agriculture message
One concern commodity groups had with the first MAHA report was its claims that agricultural chemicals could be to blame for some of the health problems facing Americans today. This was presented with few facts and agriculture groups demanded science-based evidence to support these claims.
The first report also undermined the years of research the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Agriculture have invested to ensure herbicides and pesticides used to produce food are safe and effective. The updated report reinforced the EPA and USDA as premier agencies in crop protection regulation and deviated from the original narrative expressed by MAHA.
“Sometimes it just takes corn farmers going to Washington D.C. to explain to the policymakers what is actually happening on our farms when it comes to soil health, sustainability and responsible pesticide use,” said Brett Grauerholz, Kansas Corn Growers Association secretary. “That’s what the grower members of the Kansas and National Corn Growers Association did with in-person meetings and with many of our members sending letters to the administration. Our proactive efforts truly made a difference.”
NCGA agreed.
“The policy recommendations related to crop production, released by the MAHA Commission, appear to be a reasonable and science-based approach for achieving its objectives,” said NCGA President Kenneth Hartman Jr. “We are encouraged that when the commission engaged with agricultural stakeholders and followed the science, it reaffirmed what we already know: EPA is the appropriate agency for regulating crop inputs.”
Instead of targeting agriculture as a reason for the health crisis, the second report highlighted agriculture for its involvement in safe food production. The strategy promotes voluntary conservation efforts and recommends expanding funds for programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and Conservation Stewardship Program. It also championed the adoption of new technologies in agriculture, such as precision agriculture and drones to improve sustainability and reduce inputs.
“American agriculture shares many of the MAHA movement’s goals, such as improving the health of our children, as well as ensuring we are taking great care of the health of our land,” read a statement from The Fertilizer Institute. “We are only as healthy as the soil our food comes from and there is a role to play for both industry and the public sector. TFI has for years been supportive of and actively promotes both expanded farmer adoption of 4R nutrient stewardship plans and the implementation of other conservation practices such as the use of cover crops and no-till farming. TFI has promoted stewardship practices through the ongoing 4R Advocate program, as well as the industry’s collective goal of having 70 million acres of U.S. cropland under 4R nutrient stewardship management by the year 2030.”
Much to the delight of agricultural leaders, the strategy also called for a reduction in mandates and restrictions in pesticides and other necessary production inputs. Along with less red tape for farmers, the MAHA strategy called for simplified rules for small meat processors, easing farm-to-school grants and removing zoning restrictions on mobile grocery units.
A big win for meat and milk
“Food is health” was a central theme of the report. The commission recommends a shift toward whole foods—including vegetables, fruits, meat, and dairy—to drive overall human health for the country, and agriculture plays a pivotal role in this process.
“Farmers and ranchers share the goal of improving health outcomes in America, and they are dedicated to growing safe, nutritious and affordable food for America’s families,” said Zippy Duvall, American Farm Bureau Federation president. “Healthy meals start with healthy farms, and we appreciate the report’s recognition of the vital role farmers play in the food supply chain. A renewed focus on American-grown fresh fruits, vegetables and meat, along with reintroducing whole milk into the school meal programs can help provide a foundation for a lifetime of smart choices.”
The beef industry was mostly pleased with the first MAHA report, because beef was singled out as a healthy protein necessary for a balanced diet. The second report doubles down on beef in human diets and expands upon its merits.
“From every angle, it is tough to beat American beef,” said National Cattlemen’s Beef Association President Buck Wehrbein. “Our farmers and ranchers raise the best beef in the world, providing a healthy, fresh protein option to millions of families every day. We responsibly steward millions of acres of land, water and wildlife habitat, including some of America’s most cherished landscapes and species. We pump lifeblood into the local economies of tens of thousands of communities across the rural American heartland. No matter how you look at it, American beef is the perfect fit for the MAHA Commission’s goals.”
Poultry and pork were also highlighted in both reports.
“Science has shown what American parents have known all along: nutrient dense meat and poultry products are essential to a well-balanced diet,” said Meat Institute President and CEO Julie Anna Potts. “For years, previous administrations have tried to discourage consumption of meat, primarily for reasons unrelated to nutrition, and as a result our most vulnerable populations—children, adolescent girls, nursing mothers and seniors—no longer consume enough protein and critical nutrients like iron and zinc. The bold leadership of Secretary Kennedy and Secretary Rollins will finally give Americans not only permission, but the encouragement to eat meat because it is a good, accessible source of nutrition for their families.”
One standout recommendation from the MAHA strategy is that whole milk is crucial in diets—specifically for children. The strategy states restrictions on whole milk in federal nutrition programs will be removed, a statement celebrated by the dairy industry.
“The MAHA Commission’s Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy recognizes what the latest science indicates and what we’ve long been saying: that getting whole milk back into schools and boosting dairy in diets helps meet America’s nutritional needs, and that it is critical to improving the health of our nation’s children,” said Gregg Doud, president and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation.
Lingering concerns
Although the second report is much more favorable to agriculture in general and actually celebrates the vital role agriculture plays in human health, some believe the MAHA Commission pivoted from its original rhetoric due to pressure from “Big Ag.”
“It looks like pesticide industry lobbyists steamrolled the MAHA Commission’s agenda,” said Environmental Working Group President Ken Cook. “Secretary Kennedy and President Trump cynically convinced millions they’d protect children from harmful farm chemicals— promises now exposed as hollow.”
Certain agricultural groups, although pleased with most of the changes, still expressed some frustration over certain language in the second strategy. In a press release from the National Association of Wheat Growers, the organization stated it did not appreciate the framing of enriched and refined grains as “ultra-processed.” Arguing the over-generalization is a misrepresentation of the nutritional value of their product.
“Enriched and refined grains—like bread, pasta and cereals—are important sources of fiber, iron, folic acid, and other essential nutrients for millions of Americans,” said NAWG President Pat Clements. “These foods are often fortified to help fill key nutrient gaps, especially in underserved populations. The evidence simply does not support the idea that these grain products, when consumed as part of a balanced diet, are harmful to health.”
The NPPC also made several recommendations to the MAHA Commission that could improve the strategy. NPPC asked MAHA to develop a fair and workable definition for “ultra-processed food”; provide protection for the use of food additives that enhance food safety, shelf life, and nutritional availability; exclude animal feed from reforms to the “generally recognized as safe” standard, to protect animal health; and adopt a risk-based approach— versus hazard-based— for determining the safety of technologies used in food production.
“America’s pork producers need the administration’s continued partnership and receptiveness to agriculture and food industry education,” Stateler said.
The full report can be read at www.whitehouse.gov/maha/.
Lacey Vilhauer can be reached at 620-227-1871 or [email protected].
