Some member of Trump’s inner circle are gearing up to battle “Big Food”
The new Trump administration could be coming for your snacks.
For years, the federal government has steered clear of regulating junk food, fast food, and ultra-processed food.
Now attitudes are changing. Some members of President-elect Donald Trump’s inner circle are gearing up to battle “Big Food,” or the companies that make most of the food and beverages consumed in the U.S. Nominees for top health agencies are taking aim at ultra-processed foods that account for an estimated 70%opens in a new tab or window of the nation’s food supply. Based on recent statements, a variety of potential politically-charged policy options to regulate ultra-processed food may land on the Trump team menu, including warning labels, changes to agribusiness subsidies, and limits on which products consumers can buy with government food aid.
Research on food and addiction “has accumulated to the point where it’s reached a critical mass,” said Kelly Brownell, PhD, an emeritus professor at the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University who is one of the editors of a scholarly handbookopens in a new tab or window on the subject.
Attacks from three sides — lawyers, Congress, and the incoming Trump administration, all seemingly interested in taking up the fight — could lead to enough pressure to challenge Big Food and possibly spur better health outcomes in the U.S., which has the lowest life expectancy opens in a new tab or window among high-income countries.
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January 20, 2025