The abrupt resignation of FDA Commissioner Marty Makary yesterday creates an unusual opportunity for the agency to be led by someone who hails from the food side of the house, rather than the drug side as has been historically more typical, according to industry stakeholders.
But rather than celebrate the opportunity, many food industry stakeholders and public health advocates voiced concerns about the plan for Kyle Diamantas to succeed Makary as acting FDA commissioner after serving as FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Food and head of the agency’s Human Foods Program since February 2025.
Chief among their worries are that Diamantas, like Makary, faces the difficult task of balancing science with the foundational and, at times political, tenets of the Make America Health Again movement, which is led by his boss Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr.
Some also fear Diamantas lacks the resources to effectively execute FDA’s mandate following the loss of career staff at the agency over the past year as part of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) fast-moving efforts to reduce what political appointees considered “bureaucratic bloat.”
Others question his credentials to lead the agency.
‘A nearly impossible charge’
Diamantas’ rise comes at a time of significant change and duress at FDA and HHS as Trump administration appointees push to put their fingerprint on public policy in a way that has raised alarms about whether changes are science-based or politically motivated.
For example, “Makary tried to accelerate drug approval and bring a new standard of evidence to the FDA, but also align that with the Make America Healthy Again” mandate, which “led to several FDA decisions that seemed more political than scientific,” according to CEI health policy expert Jeremy Nighohossian.
“The next FDA commissioner should prioritize speed and efficiency and resist blocking or slowing down certain types of treatment technologies, such as mRNA vaccines, due to political pressures,” he said.
Leading FDA may be a “nearly impossible charge” for Diamantas, who is tasked with “leading, as a non-scientist, a science-based agency under an unqualified Secretary who puts his own medical and nutritional pet peeves over evidence-based public health,” said Peter Lurie, president of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
He also noted that Diamantas lacks the support of a full roster of public health leaders, given the key vacancies of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Surgeon General.
Lurie mused: “Robert F Kennedy Jr is the cause of much of the chaos that has resulted in these job vacancies.”
He added that “the American people deserve full-time, Senate-confirmed, qualified officials to lead the agencies charged with protecting our health, not the conveyor belt of chaos Kennedy has put in motion.”
Industry stakeholders balance cautious optimism with practical performance
Diamantas is no stranger to operating under these conditions, but that doesn’t mean he is able to do so effectively.
“As Deputy Commissioner, Kyle Diamantas had a difficult job. The FDA has never prioritized food safety and laying off 20% of the career staff made a bad situation worse,” said Melanie Benesh, vice president of government affairs at the Environmental Working Group.
She noted that in his tenure as FDA Deputy Commissioner for Food, Diamantas “opened his door to groups like EWG concerned about food safety,” but she added, “that has not yet resulted in safe food or much meaningful progress on food chemicals.”
Despite this, Benesh voiced cautious optimism, noting Diamantas “has tried to lay the foundation for a time when the FDA might have the right resources, deadlines, personnel and culture to complement the important work states are doing on food chemicals.”
The Institute of Food Technologies echoed Benesh’s willingness to support FDA and work with Diamantas.
“We look forward to supporting the FDA with the highest quality food science and continuing our advocacy for having food science and food scientists centered in the development of laws and regulations,” said Brendan Niemira, IFT’s chief science and technology officer.
United Natural Products Alliance President and Founder Loren Israelsen also remained open minded about the leadership change.
“We hope this will serve us well,” he said, noting the dietary supplement industry’s “ongoing relationship with Mr. Diamantas” and his familiarity with the supplement industry’s work agenda with FDA.
