The Trump administration is framing the new Dietary Guidelines not as nutrition advice, but as a federal systems strategy – using government procurement, institutional food programs and public messaging to shift the US food economy away from ultra-processed foods and toward whole foods at scale.
“For the first time in our nation’s history, the federal government put real food at the center of the American diet and protein in the center of the American plate,” HHS Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr. said yesterday during a government press conference.
According to HHS, the guidelines emphasize whole, nutrient-dense foods over ultra-processed products, aiming to tackle chronic disease rates that now affect six in 10 American adults and nearly one in five teenagers.
“Today, we are putting the full weight of the federal government behind one goal: making healthy, affordable food accessible to every American,” Kennedy said.
Critics of the guidelines disagree with the recommendations for increased animal protein and dairy, which contain higher levels of saturated fat and pose more health risks for Americans than plant-based alternatives.
Aside from health concerns, the guidelines are also criticized of catering to meat and dairy trade groups at the expense of American diets, with one expert calling for a “mulligan” to revise the recommendations in line with modern health research.
Check out the Dietary Guidelines edit
- Why the 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines need a ‘mulligan’ – and how to fix them: This isn’t a food fight, it’s a structural failure, according to experts who say the new US Dietary Guidelines need a reset, not another round of compromises
- US Dietary Guidelines sideline MyPlate in favor of inverted food pyramid: The 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans spotlight an inverted food pyramid, effectively sidelining MyPlate and sparking debate among nutrition experts and educators
- 2026 beef trends: How new Dietary Guidelines are shaping protein demand: Dietary guidance, convenience-driven meals and emerging trends like beef tallow may open new avenues for innovation in beef
- ‘Highly-processed’ or ‘ultra-processed’? New dietary guidelines reignite a definitional food fight: The 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans avoid the term “ultra-processed foods,” prompting both praise and criticism
- How the Dietary Guidelines may shape product strategy and development: The latest Dietary Guidelines may not reinvent the wheel, but they offer manufacturers a roadmap to balance nutrition, consumer preference and formulation strategy across sweeteners, grains and processed foods, according to one expert
- Study finds dietary guidelines linked to forced labor risks in supply chain: Seafood, dairy and red meat carry a higher risk of forced labor, according to a new Tufts and University of Nottingham study that maps labor exploitation across popular US diets
Leveraging federal procurement
USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins highlighted the influence of federal procurement in driving dietary change.
“Every day, the US Department of Agriculture spends almost $400 million on our 16 nutrition programs,” which is a lever to “make America healthy again,” she said at the press conference.
Through programs like SNAP, school lunches, military dining and correctional facilities, the administration is redirecting government dollars toward American farmers and whole foods.
“We are restoring common sense, scientific integrity and accountability to the federal food and health policy,” Rollins added.
Institutions as change agents
The press conference showcased concrete examples of institutional reforms.
Army Undersecretary Michael Obadal described a “campus-style dining model across our training centers” to provide soldiers with nutrient-rich options, replacing low-nutrient processed foods.
Similarly, the Federal Bureau of Prisons is exploring evidence-based improvements to inmate meals that support health, reduce aggression and foster rehabilitation, with nutrition positioned as an existing tool “that can support safer, healthier and more stable institutions,” said Director William Marshall.
Public messaging and cultural shift
The administration is pairing institutional changes with public messaging.
Heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson served as a spokesman for the Make America Healthy Again initiative. Tyson appeared in nationwide campaigns, including during the Super Bowl, encouraging Americans to “bite into real food … it means a better bite for a better life.”
Kennedy framed this effort as part of a broader cultural reset.
“Previous dietary guidelines downplayed dangers of added sugar,” and HHS’ current initiative is “finally putting real food back at the center of the American diet,” he said.
The press conference also highlighted the redesign of the federal food pyramid and the RealFood.gov website.
Joe Gebbia of the National Design Studio said, “We flipped the script, literally putting high-quality protein, dairy, healthy fats, vibrant vegetables and fruits where they belong” and “highly processed junk is finally called out for what it is.”
Whole grains are placed at the tip – or bottom – of the newly designed food pyramid. Critics of the inverted pyramid note that while the DGA continues to recommend multiple daily servings of whole grains, the visual placement of these foods suggests the opposite.
SNAP reform and retail standards
Rollins noted measurable policy achievements, particularly the 18 states that have been approved for their SNAP waivers excluding unhealthy foods.
She also highlighted updates to stocking standards requiring retailers that accept SNAP EBT to more than double healthy food offerings, a step she called a “major win for making America healthy again.”
