Concerned that the Make America Healthy Again Commission will blame modern agricultural practices for chronic diseases, farm groups are pushing the White House to ensure the panel's initial report is based on "sound science and evidence-based claims."
That report, expected May 22, will set out to identify possible drivers of diseases, including diet and environmental factors. From there, the commission will suggest a government-wide strategy to tackle chronic disease.
But four leading agriculture groups said in a statement today they have heard “disturbing accounts” that the report could suggest farmers' production practices are contributing to the rise in chronic diseases. The organizations include the American Soybean Association, International Fresh Produce Association, National Corn Growers Association and the National Association of Wheat Growers.
“Nothing could be further from the truth. Nutrition matters, health matters, and the confidence of consumers in the food supply matters tremendously,” the groups wrote in a statement.
They added that such statements would go against decades of findings from the Environmental Protection Agency.
"We urge President Trump to ensure that the MAHA Commission report is based on sound science and evidence-based claims rather than opinions and preferences of social influencers and single-issue activists with little to no experience in actual farming or food production,” the groups said in their statement.
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They also urge the Trump administration to consider the consequences of the report before it is finalized. “Should the MAHA Commission report baselessly attack and, worse yet, make claims that are simply untrue against the hardworking men and women who feed our nation, it will make further cooperation on this initiative very difficult and potentially put American food production at risk,” the groups said.
President Donald Trump established the MAHA Commission with an executive order shortly after both Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins were sworn in. The panel, led by Kennedy, is tasked with addressing chronic diseases among children. Rollins, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Martin Makary also sit on the panel.
However, the bulk of this process has happened behind closed doors. Agriculture groups have been left in the dark about exactly what may be coming their way, as HHS has denied meeting requests throughout the process, according to an industry source.
This has caused some anxiety as the date for the report’s release approaches, given previous criticism of pesticides – and glyphosate in particular – food chemicals and seed oils by Kennedy and others in the MAHA world.
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