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RFK Jr. promises to tackle ultra-processed foods, food colors and additives
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. set his sights on changing the way Americans ate and drank.
From the dye in Fruit Loops cereal to the seed oil in chicken nuggets, Kennedy, who was chosen by President-elect Trump to head the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), has long spoken out against ingredients that harm the health of Americans.
After quitting his bid to run for president as an independent and endorsing Donald Trump, Kennedy spoke at a rally in November, saying, “We are failing our children by letting the (food) industry poison them.” “There is,” he said.
But if President Kennedy wants to target junk food, he will first need to shake up national food regulations and confront Big Food.
“What he’s suggesting is a challenge to the food industry,” said Marion Nestle, a former nutrition professor at New York University. “Will Trump support him on that? I’ll believe it when I see it.”
The former environmental lawyer, who still needs Senate confirmation, has a history of making unsubstantiated health claims, including that vaccines can cause autism and that Wi-Fi technology can cause cancer. Considering, many people consider him to be a controversial figure.
But some of his ideas for FDA reform have received support from health experts, lawmakers and concerned consumers alike, including some Democrats.
Colorado’s Democratic governor, Jared Polis, welcomed Kennedy’s nomination this week, writing on social media that Kennedy “will make America healthy again by shaking up HHS and the FDA.” After facing public backlash for praising Polis, Polis acknowledged his support, writing on social media: “Science must remain the foundation of our nation’s health care policy.”
make america healthy again
Ahead of the election, Kennedy, a former Democrat, proposed several ideas to tackle chronic disease under the slogan “Make America Healthy Again.”
He points out that ultra-processed foods, which are products processed with added fats, starches, and sugars, such as frozen pizza, potato chips, and sugar-filled breakfast cereals, are linked to health problems such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. have frequently advocated for the exclusion of
He primarily targeted school lunches, telling Fox News: “There’s a generation of kids right now who are swimming in a toxic soup.”
Kennedy’s new responsibilities include overseeing the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which has more than 18,000 employees.
The agency, which is responsible for ensuring the safety of medicines and the U.S. food supply, has come under fire in recent years from some lawmakers and consumer groups for a lack of transparency and action on food safety. .
The 70-year-old has vowed to take a sledgehammer to government offices and fire employees who he says are part of a “corrupt system.”
Kennedy told MSNBC this month that “entire departments, like the nutrition division of the FDA, have to go and are not doing their jobs.”
He is also pushing for the elimination of food colorings, including Red No. 3, and other additives banned in other countries.
The former Democratic congressman also spoke about fluoride in drinking water, which he says should be completely banned, and raw milk, which he believes has health benefits despite the increased risk of bacterial contamination. It also cites controversial health issues.
He also took aim at seed oils, writing on social media that Americans are “unknowingly being poisoned” by products such as canola and sunflower oil used in fast food.
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President Kennedy wants to ban ultra-processed foods from school cafeterias
what the evidence says
Several public health experts support President Kennedy’s goal of tackling ultra-processed foods, arguing that the United States eats far higher rates of ultra-processed foods than many other countries. There is.
“It’s very exciting to hear someone advocating for something to be done about chronic disease,” Nestlé said.
Dr. Peter Lurie, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit organization that advocates for food safety, said President Kennedy’s goal of eliminating certain food additives and colorings could also be beneficial. said.
A former FDA official said some food dyes should also be banned by the U.S. government, including Red No. 3, which is banned in California, due to concerns about carcinogens.
The FDA pushed back on Kennedy’s claim that the United States allows thousands of additives that are banned in the European Union. A spokesperson said it was necessary to “dig deeper and understand the context behind the numbers” when comparing U.S. and EU regulations, which have different methodologies.
But public health experts and former officials said many of Kennedy’s goals were unworthy and, in some cases, harmful.
For example, studies have found that drinking raw milk that hasn’t been pasteurized, which helps kill bacteria, can make you sick and even kill you.
“As far as we know, there is no evidence that not pasteurizing milk confers any nutritional benefits,” Dr. Lurie said.
Garner said President Kennedy’s proposal to remove fluoride from drinking water could also be problematic because trace amounts of fluoride in water have been shown to improve dental health. said.
Removing fluoride from water supplies would also be outside of his jurisdiction, since fluoride levels are controlled by the state.
Lurie also said his claim that seed oils are contributing to the obesity epidemic is not based in science.
“We don’t see any evidence of that. In fact, they seem to be important enough to replace saturated fats such as butter,” he said.
Challenge to big food
Food reform has long been part of the public health debate, but some experts said it may simply become politically and bureaucratically impractical.
“It’s much more complicated than he says,” Dr. Lurie said. “These are real challenges and we will encounter industry opposition at every turn.”
As an example, several former officials told the BBC that the FDA lacks comprehensive control over “ultra-processed foods.”
In fact, the process is more complex. The USDA and FDA both regulate the food industry. Rather than making rules, the FDA works to limit unhealthy foods by enforcing policies passed by Congress and forcing limits and labeling on certain nutrients, such as sodium and saturated fat. .
Kennedy’s comments “make for great political rhetoric,” Garner said. “In my opinion, I don’t see how that is possible without significant changes to other policies and infrastructure.”
Former FDA officials said he would also face industry opposition to his proposal to ban pesticides and genetically modified organisms commonly used by U.S. farmers.
“Companies are going to complain,” said Rosalie Lisinski, a former FDA employee for 33 years.
Many of Kennedy’s goals include more rulemaking, but the industry is used to limited oversight from both Democrats and Republicans, including during the Trump administration’s first term.
Politico reported last month that several food industry groups met with lawmakers to lobby against Kennedy before he took office this month.
Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa met with President Kennedy this week before his confirmation hearing and said he planned to “spend a lot of time educating him about agriculture.”
Kennedy’s position also puts him at odds with President-elect Trump, a longtime fast food enthusiast who worked during his first term to roll back strict health requirements for school lunches.
“There are some ideas that make some sense, but they are exactly the kinds of things that this administration is against,” Dr. Lurie said.
In a statement to the BBC, the Food Industry Association, which represents food retailers, producers and manufacturers such as General Mills, said: “We want to ensure that food and drug policy continues to be science-based and reduce drug use. I look forward to working with Mr. Trump’s team toward this end.” Regulatory Complexity.”
Industry complaints about Kennedy’s policies are not surprising, said Jeff Hutt, a spokesman for the Make America Healthy Again political action committee, which is urging Republican lawmakers to confirm Kennedy. .
Hutt said the health movement’s goal is to “put America’s health above corporate profits.”
“Even if the idea of banning ultra-processed foods is politically impossible, it’s something we need to have a conversation about,” he said.
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path to change
Mr. Kennedy could still work within the country’s existing regulatory framework to improve the U.S. food system, former officials said.
Nestlé said President Kennedy could tackle ultra-processed foods by changing the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, which set nutritional standards for industry and federal programs such as school lunches and military meals.
“They have a huge impact on the food industry,” Ms Nestlé said. “That would make a big difference.”
The guidelines are updated every five years by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and DHHS, but the agency previously said there was not enough evidence against ultra-processed foods.
Still, officials and nutrition experts expressed concerns about the steps President Kennedy proposed to enact his agenda, including the firing of FDA nutritionists.
Lisinski said the move would have a major impact on food safety. “If you lose top experts, you’re going to have problems,” she says.
In the end, Garner said it’s difficult to disentangle some of President Kennedy’s more reasonable food improvement goals from the false health claims he promoted.
“There’s an opportunity here,” Garner said.
“But I think there are legitimate concerns given the other issues and how his approach to those issues will play out here.”
