December 26, 2025
Lobbyists Push Back Against RFK Jr.-Backed Crackdown On Ultra-Processed Foods
Ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, lawmakers and food industry leaders vie for voter support.
Ultraprocessed food manufacturers claim that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s plan to crack down on food ingredients with his Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement will continue to raise food prices.
The companies believe this idea will resonate with Americans, as affordability remains a primary concern for voters. According to The Politico Poll conducted in Nov, 2025 by Public First, nearly half of Americans say that the costs of groceries, healthcare, and transportation have become significant stressors.
The dynamic here is affordability,” said Sam Geduldig, managing partner at Republican lobbying firm CGCN, which represents Kraft Heinz, told Politico. “You have a MAHA movement that would like to accomplish one goal, and then you have an inflation, economic affordability issue on the other side that runs counter,” Geduldig said.
Kennedy is advocating for a federal rule change that would require greater oversight when food manufacturers alter their recipes or add new ingredients. However, he also encouraged states, including Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma, to adopt these rules independently.
In October, industry trade groups and food companies, including Kraft Heinz, Nestlé, and PepsiCo, launched a coalition called Americans for Ingredient Transparency to urge policymakers to make food regulation a federal responsibility. The group warns that state-by-state rules will raise consumer costs nationwide.
“President Trump is cutting costs and delivering real relief for working families, but these well-intentioned state bills are creating a patchwork of labeling regulations that could undermine his goal to lower costs for Americans,” Andy Koenig, a former special assistant to Trump and a senior adviser to Americans for Ingredient Transparency, wrote in a statement to Politico.
In state legislatures across the country, lawmakers from both parties have introduced over a hundred bills aimed at improving nutrition by cracking down on sugary drinks, synthetic food dyes, and chemicals often found in ultraprocessed foods. Some of the most notable regulations include a California ban on ultraprocessed foods in schools and a Texas law requiring food companies to place warning labels on products that contain any of 44 additives.
Food industry lobbyists say they expect the push for a federal standard to become a top priority for them next year. They also believe rising economic anxiety will aid their efforts to defeat MAHA.
Lobbying spending from major food companies has surged to record levels this year. The American Beverage Association, which represents non-alcoholic drink manufacturers, spent $2.39 million in the first nine months alone. Kraft Heinz reported $1.35 million in spending over the same period, according to Politico.
The lobbying efforts appear to be effective. The final version of a Kennedy-backed report on strategies to combat chronic disease in children, released in September, adopted a more lenient stance on ultraprocessed foods than the earlier report released in May. The May report described ultraprocessed foods as “detrimental” to children’s health, but that language was removed from the later document.
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