As the ‘MAHA’ agenda takes shape, some brands welcome ingredient restrictions
Last week, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to head up the Department of Health and Human Services, and Kennedy has already promised to “fix” America’s broken food system.
As part of his “Make America Healthy Again,” or MAHA, movement, Kennedy wants to put in place ingredient reforms that may impact American food companies. When he was on the campaign trail a few months ago, Kennedy even sold “make frying oil tallow again” merchandise that is still available on his website.
During his presidential campaign, Kennedy provided a wide range of — sometimes conflicting — views on health topics such as vaccines. While he has claimed in interviews that he’s “never been anti-vaccine,” Kennedy previously falsely claimed that vaccinations for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) can cause autism. It remains to be seen exactly what types of initiatives Kennedy may try to implement at HHS. He’s taken aim at specific ingredients, for example, like seed oils and food dyes — and it’s unclear whether his department might try to ban them outright or find ways to significantly curtail their usage. But when it comes to food, Kennedy has said his mission is to reduce unhealthy ingredients and additives, an effort that’s being welcomed by food startups already making better-for-you products.
Investors in better-for-you food companies already see the potential for market share growth over the next few years.
Elly Truesdell, partner at New Fare Partners, which invests in clean ingredient brands like Actual Veggies and Mid-Day Squares, said the firm was built with the bet that consumers will increasingly scrutinize artificial ingredients, which can lead to calls for government bans.
“We’ve seen the consumer educate themselves,” Truesdell said. “And they’ve watched the rest of the world take action against harmful ingredients, removing them from their supply chains.” She added that the current wave of better-for-you food brands has seen this coming and thus put in the work across R&D, supply chain and operations.
“They will be well-positioned if this type of regulation is passed at the federal level,” Tuesdell said.
If legislation banning certain ingredients, like some food dyes, goes through at the federal level, Truesdell said, “it will be a huge win” for investors and CPG brands already complying as they’re poised to take more share from legacy players while they scramble to transition.
The war on seed oils
It seems that one of Kennedy’s goals as the head of the HHS will be to get seed oils, which include canola and vegetable oils, out of food. He has gone as far as to say that Americans are “being unknowingly poisoned by heavily subsidized seed oils.” The American Heart Association, for its part, has said there are no reasons to avoid seed oils.
“We try not to be ‘partisan’ or take sides,” said Jesse Konig, the co-founder of Jesse and Ben’s, a frozen fries brand that uses avocado oil or grass-fed beef tallow in its products. “But we are definitely big believers in the benefits that come from removing seed oils from your diet.”
Still, if Kennedy’s proposal to get companies to use beef tallow over seed oils goes through, Konig said it would mean more expensive ingredients across the board on every food, at least in the immediate term. “Part of the politics that came into this election was about food prices and everything being expensive on the grocery shelf,” he said. “This wouldn’t help in bringing down grocery prices.” Eventually, the demand could help make more natural oils like beef tallow ingredients cheaper to produce at scale.
“I personally would be really surprised if it was a full-on ban on seed oils,” Konig said. But there could be new taxes on seed oils or incentivization structures to use healthier oils.
The impact of artificial food dye use
In the final days of Trump’s campaign, Kennedy said that food dyes were one of the first ingredients he would take aim at. “The first thing I’d do isn’t going to cost you anything because I’m just gonna tell the cereal companies: Take all the dyes out of their food,” Kennedy said.
Artificial food dyes have been in the news a lot this year, as a number of states, including New York, Illinois and Washington, have banned the dye Red Dye No. 3 specifically. The European Union has prohibited Red Dye No. 3 from being used in almost all food. In the U.S., the FDA has banned the usage of it in cosmetics. Last October, California passed a law banning the usage of Red Dye No. 3 in food — in addition to a handful of other additives — starting in 2027.
Some major brands, however, still use the ingredient. Currently, there is an ongoing boycott of cereal giant Kellogg’s due to their use of artificial dyes in the U.S., which are otherwise banned in other countries. A protest at the company’s headquarters was promoted by actress and entrepreneur Eva Mendes. However, Kellogg’s says its products are “compliant with all applicable relevant laws and regulations.”
Still, other cereal makers are bracing for the upcoming administration to crack down on artificial dyes, and are trying to get ahead of the issue. On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that General Mills is planning to engage with federal regulators as they consider proposals that could limit the usage of additives like food dyes.
Part of the reason why more activists are taking aim at food dyes is because there have been some small clinical trials that have suggested some synthetic food dyes could increase hyperactivity in children, as The New York Times recently reported. However, there is no concrete evidence that these dyes directly cause ADHD, as Kennedy has claimed.
There are some specific dyes, like Red Dye No. 3, which are banned in other countries. However, in other cases, countries have taken a different approach to product labels compared to the U.S. For example, the European Union and Canada require warnings on products containing certain artificial dyes.
In an interview with MSNBC last week, Kennedy criticized the fact that, in the U.S., Froot Loops have “18 or 19 ingredients, and when you go to Canada, they’ve got two or three?” However, that’s incorrect. The Kellogg’s-owned cereal sold in Canada actually has 16 ingredients but does limit the use of Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6 and Blue 1.
Still, many founders in the food and beverage space say it can’t hurt to avoid artificial ingredients like synthetic food coloring. And many are already embracing natural ingredients.
Carmel Hagen, founder of clean baking brand Supernatural, said that while she doesn’t endorse all of Kennedy’s theories, his take on synthetic dyes is in line with Supernatural’s mission. The brand sells sprinkles, for example, that don’t contain artificial dyes, soy, or confectioner’s glaze.
The extent of the harm artificial dyes cause is still being researched. But when new research comes, Hagen said, “the FDA has a responsibility” to review and react in the interest of Americans’ health.
With California leading the nation in banning synthetic additives like red food dye, there is already precedent for getting these dyes out of Americans’ food. Hagen said that compared to other ingredient reform proposals by Kennedy, such as the use of seed oils, “Colors are pretty easy to replace in the grand scheme of things.”
A slow industry change
Daniel Goetz, founder and CEO of natural popsicle brand GoodPop, said a sweeping change across CPG will take time as big conglomerates catch up with better-for-you startups. GoodPops’ frozen treats either get their color from the fruit ingredient itself, such as cherry juice, or from natural plant-based sources, like blue spirulina and golden turmeric.
The process of reformulating and printing new packaging can often take years for small brands to execute, he said. “So realistically we’re years out from any widespread changes on the shelf,” Goetz said.
“Given GoodPop’s products don’t contain any artificial dyes or ingredients, a change in policy wouldn’t directly impact us,” Goetz said. However, he said that with more education around the negative impacts of food dyes, especially on kids’ health, “more consumers could come into the category looking for better-for-you options.”
Aside from dyes, GoodPop is also paying close attention to updates from the FDA on front-of-pack labeling regulations. The company recently hired Holly Adrien, the former natural and organics strategy manager for Kroger, to lead all of its engagement and advocacy efforts around these policy reforms.
Similarly, Hagen said a total dye ban could have some immediate and longer-term effects on both emerging and mass-market brands. “In the short term, price increases on the foods and in some cases, some shelf life is reduced,” Hagen said. Additionally, some products’ looks will visually change since not all artificial hues have natural equivalents yet. “Longer term, prices may partially back down from scale economy,” she said.
There are some ways to go to perfect natural food coloring. For instance, Hagen said, natural reds are improving, along with orange, pink, purple and yellow are great. Meanwhile, greens and blues are still not great for use in all types of foods and beverages.
Konig of Jesse and Ben’s hopes that Kennedy and the incoming administration’s “MAHA” movement goes beyond a political slogan to actually result in ingredient reform. “We definitely try not to pick a [political] side, we think there is a lot more in common in the middle than most people talk about,” said Konig.