Food group backs RFK Jr. call for reform, questions Trump’s commitment

At least one prominent food watchdog group agrees with statements by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for the need for reform of the industrial food system, but the Center for Food Safety is taking a wait-and-see approach amid observations that Kennedy’s positions don’t square with the record of President-elect Donald Trump.

Kennedy has been highly critical of federal health agencies, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, recently telling NBC News that the U.S. contains 1,000 ingredients in food that are illegal in Europe and “other countries, and they’re making our kids sick.”

“They’re there because of corruption in our agencies,” declared Kennedy, who’s been nominated by Trump to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Several agencies fall under the umbrella of HHS, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), FDA and National Institutes of Health (NIH).

“On the campaign trail and prior, RFK Jr. has correctly called out the lack of regulatory oversight of our industrial food system and corporate control of it,” the Center for Food Safety said in a statement emailed to SupplySide Supplement Journal. “This includes the lack of regulation of food additives, the overuse of toxic pesticides, and adverse impacts on the environment and farmers from pesticide-resistant, genetically engineered crops.”

Related:Dietary supplement industry cheers RFK Jr.’s HHS nomination

The Center for Food Safety is a nonprofit public interest and environmental advocacy group that has sued various government agencies over the years, including FDA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, among others. It has offices in Washington, D.C., Portland, Oregon, and San Francisco. In 2022, the group sued FDA over its failure to release documents regarding approval of genetically engineered salmon.

“We definitely agree with these accurate and important critiques in principle and the need for reform and dismantling industrial agriculture to build a better future for our food. But we also recognize the powerful machine that is the pesticide and agrichemical lobbying industry, so we will wait to see what [Kennedy] actually does,” the advocacy group wrote in the emailed statement. “Notably President Trump’s record does not support Kennedy’s positions; namely, Trump’s first term was overwhelmingly controlled by industrial agriculture’s interests and did their bidding, so it would be a major change and without precedent.”

In an earlier statement after Trump secured the presidency, the Center for Food Safety proclaimed, in part: “Donald Trump's previous tenure in office was marked by an extreme willingness to roll back environmental protections, weaken standards on pesticides, and enrich corporations at the expense of public health and the planet.”

Related:Donald Trump’s election offers peril and promise to dietary supplement industry, insiders say

Many of Kennedy’s statements could be construed as representing a threat to big food and other corporate interests.

“I look forward to working with the more than 80,000 employees at HHS to free the agencies from the smothering cloud of corporate capture so they can pursue their mission to make Americans once again the healthiest people on Earth,” Kennedy wrote in a Nov. 14 Facebook post. “Together we will clean up corruption, stop the revolving door between industry and government, and return our health agencies to their rich tradition of gold-standard, evidence-based science. I will provide Americans with transparency and access to all the data so they can make informed choices for themselves and their families.”

The Consumer Brands Association — formerly known as the Grocery Manufacturers Association — did not mention Kennedy by name when asked to comment on Trump’s pick to lead HHS and Kennedy’s recent statements about making America healthy again and cleaning up the corruption in government agencies. Its members include such food and beverage behemoths as Abbott Nutrition, The Coca-Cola Company, General Mills, Keurig Dr Pepper and Nestlé.

Related:Donald Trump’s election offers peril and promise to dietary supplement industry, insiders say

“The makers of America’s household brands deliver safe, affordable and convenient products that consumers want, need and trust, every day. Keeping consumers and their families safe is our number one priority,” Sarah Gallo, senior vice president of federal affairs with the Consumer Brands Association, said in an emailed statement. “The federal regulatory agencies within HHS operate under a science and risk-based mandate and it is critical that framework remains under the new administration. As the largest domestic manufacturing employer, supporting more than 22 million American jobs, we are prepared to work with the confirmed appointee and qualified experts within HHS to support public health, build consumer trust and promote consumer choice.”

Reaction to RFJ Jr. news from dietary supplement stakeholders

Several sources in the dietary supplement industry have cheered RFK Jr.’s HHS nomination, including the Natural Products Association (NPA).

“The FDA is in need of serious reform,” the trade group said in a statement. “President-elect Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. spotlights the need for this reform. We are excited about this nomination because Americans value health, freedom and natural products.”

United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA) President Loren Israelsen said Trump’s pick was positive news for the industry.

Kennedy “has been clear in his views that Americans are not a healthy people, and the root causes are well known and must be addressed,” Israelsen told SupplySide Supplement Journal. “What that means is peril for some and great promise for others. Our industry would fall into the great promise side of this equation.”

Some dietary supplement trade associations issued more general statements about collaborating or engaging with senior government officials after the news broke about Trump’s pick to lead HHS.

"Whoever ultimately assumes the role of HHS Secretary, we look forward to working collaboratively with them to advance our shared understanding of the nutritional benefits of dietary supplements and functional foods,” Steve Mister, president and CEO of the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), said. “Our priority will always be to champion the health and well-being of consumers and to uphold the trust and confidence of the 75 percent of Americans who rely on our members' products.”

Michael McGuffin, president of the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA), said his organization “is committed to engaging with public health leadership within the incoming administration in support of our mission to ensure access to safe, high-quality dietary supplements.”

“A key element of AHPA’s approach is maintaining and building our network of contacts at all levels of government so that we can have a strong voice for our members, no matter how the regulatory landscape may be transformed,” McGuffin added. “Our focus will remain on advancing policies that support consumer safety, transparency and access to trusted products.”