Food regulation update July 6: The latest on MAHA and related developments

CHICAGO, July 6, 2026 — The following is a roundup of regulatory developments affecting the food-away-from-home business, including policy changes that are part of the Administration's Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiative. The report is compiled and written by Dr. Joy Dubost, a renowned food scientist and registered dietitian with strong knowledge of what's happening on the regulatory front.

MAHA

Consumer Polls on MAHA

A new POLITICO poll suggests that while relatively few Americans identify themselves as part of the MAHA movement, many share the same priorities when it comes to food and nutrition. The findings indicate that concerns about the U.S. food supply extend beyond those who formally associate with the movement, underscoring the growing mainstream focus on food ingredients and transparency.

Among self-identified MAHA supporters, concerns about food ingredients were among the movement's strongest areas of agreement. The poll found broad support for removing pesticides and artificial food dyes from the food supply, even among many respondents who do not identify as part of the MAHA movement. More broadly, the survey found that 75% of Americans believe there is not enough regulation of chemical additives in food, while 64% believe pesticides used in agriculture are not sufficiently regulated. When asked why they support MAHA, 15% cited removing or regulating harmful substances in food, while 7% pointed to improving Americans' nutritional habits and another 7% cited reducing obesity rates. These findings suggest that ingredient safety and food quality continue to resonate with consumers well beyond the movement's political base. In addition, the poll also found that concerns about ultra-processed foods (UPF) extend well beyond self-identified MAHA supporters. Approximately two-thirds of respondents said they are concerned about the amount of UPFs in the U.S. food supply, making it one of the highest-ranking food-related concerns in the survey. Among MAHA supporters, concern was even higher, reinforcing that reducing UPF consumption has become a unifying issue within the movement.

In addition, a new Fox News poll also suggests that many of the food and nutrition priorities associated with the MAHA agenda resonate with voters across the political spectrum, even as opinions of HHS Secretary Kennedy remain divided. The survey found that voters prioritize protecting public health over lowering food prices by a 16-point margin (58% vs. 42%), with majorities of Democrats, Republicans, and independents sharing that view. The poll also found broad support for several food policy initiatives. Nearly 9 in 10 voters (89%) said it is important for the government to improve food safety, while 85% support expanding access to healthy foods. In addition, 83% believe limiting harmful food additives should be a government priority, and 81% favor increasing transparency in food labeling. These findings suggest that ingredient safety and clearer labeling have become bipartisan issues with broad consumer appeal.

For food manufacturers, ingredient suppliers, retailers, and foodservice operators, the results suggest that consumer expectations around ingredient transparency, cleaner formulations, and chemical exposures continue to broaden beyond political affiliations. As federal and state policymakers' advance initiatives targeting food dyes, pesticides, UPFs, and ingredient disclosure, companies should recognize that these issues increasingly resonate with a wider segment of consumers and are likely to remain prominent in the policy landscape.

HHS

New Nomination

President Trump has nominated Chris Klomp to serve as Deputy Secretary of HHS, formalizing his role as HHS Secretary Kennedy's second-in-command. Klomp has served as HHS Chief Counselor since February, where he has overseen day-to-day operations following the department's large-scale reorganization and workforce reductions. If confirmed by the Senate, he will become the department's chief operating official.

A former healthcare technology executive and Director of Medicare, Klomp has emerged as a key architect behind several Trump administration healthcare initiatives, including prescription drug pricing negotiations, healthcare payment reforms, and efforts to streamline prior authorization and improve health data interoperability. His appointment is widely viewed as an effort to strengthen operational management while advancing the administration's broader healthcare agenda.

For food and nutrition stakeholders, Klomp's nomination is unlikely to alter the administration's MAHA priorities focused on ingredients, nutrition and chronic disease prevention. Instead, his appointment is expected to provide greater operational oversight and coordination across HHS agencies including the FDA, NIH, and CDC as the administration continues implementing its policy agenda.

Physical Activity

HHS Secretary Kennedy officially relaunched the Presidential Fitness Test and introduced GetActive.gov/kids during an event at the Boys & Girls Club of Atlantic City. The initiative, part of the Trump administration's MAHA agenda, aims to encourage physical activity and healthy habits among children.

Beginning this fall, schools will be encouraged to administer the updated Presidential Fitness Test using age-appropriate standards that measure strength, endurance, speed, and agility, with support from HHS partnerships with the Boys & Girls Club of America, WWE, and other community organizations.

FEDERAL

Senate Farm Bill

The Senate Agriculture Committee has released its proposed Agricultural Act of 2026, which would reauthorize USDA nutrition programs through 2031 and largely aligns with the House-passed Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026. Both bills retain the SNAP reforms and state cost-sharing provisions enacted in 2025, a policy that continues to generate debate among public health, anti-hunger, and state organizations while maintaining investments in nutrition security, healthy food access, and produce incentive programs. From a nutrition perspective, there are relatively few major policy differences between the two proposals, suggesting these specific provisions are unlikely to become major issues during House-Senate conference negotiations. The most significant differences between the two bills are expected to center on agricultural, conservation, and commodity provisions rather than nutrition policy.

Several nutrition-related provisions are particularly noteworthy:

Section 4302 - Purchase of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables for Schools and Service Institutions

This section extends through 2031 USDA's authority to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables for distribution to schools and other nutrition assistance programs. Continuing this authority supports greater access to fresh produce in child nutrition programs while providing a stable market for specialty crop producers. This provision is largely unchanged from the House proposal.

Section 4303 - Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP)

The bill reauthorizes GusNIP through 2031 while expanding eligible foods beyond traditional fresh produce. Nutrition incentive projects would continue to promote all forms of fruits and vegetables, while produce prescription projects would expand to include legumes in addition to fruits and vegetables. The legislation also directs USDA to study the feasibility of transferring produce prescription activities to HHS, reflecting the growing integration of Food is Medicine initiatives into healthcare. The House proposal similarly reauthorizes GusNIP, making this one of the strongest areas of agreement between the two chambers.

Section 4305 - Dietary Guidelines for Americans

One of the most significant nutrition policy provisions reforms the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) process. Like the House bill, the Senate proposal would move from updating the Guidelines every five years to every ten years beginning with the 2030 iteration, with interim updates only when supported by substantial new scientific evidence. The legislation further requires USDA and HHS to base the Guidelines on the preponderance of current scientific and medical knowledge, strengthen conflict-of-interest requirements for advisory committee members, improve transparency throughout the scientific review process, and ensure the Guidelines remain focused on nutrition and dietary recommendations.

In addition, the bill expands the role of Senate-confirmed political leadership within USDA and HHS. Under the proposal, politically appointed officials including the Secretaries or their designees would have greater authority to review the scientific evidence, determine whether the evidence meets the statutory standard of "preponderance of scientific and medical knowledge," and approve the scientific questions and evidence considered during development of the Guidelines before they are finalized. While supporters argue these changes will improve accountability and ensure the Guidelines remain focused on nutrition science, critics contend they could increase political influence over what has historically been an independent scientific advisory process. The Senate language closely mirrors reforms included in the House bill, reflecting a broader congressional effort to reshape how future Dietary Guidelines are developed.

Section 4307 - Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI)

The Senate proposal reauthorizes the Healthy Food Financing Initiative through 2031, continuing grants and financing to expand grocery stores, food retailers, food hubs, and other healthy food infrastructure in underserved communities. The initiative is intended to improve access to nutritious foods in areas with limited food availability while supporting community economic development. This provision is also consistent with the House proposal, reflecting continued bipartisan support for improving healthy food access.

Comparison with the House Farm Bill

Overall, the Senate and House nutrition titles are highly aligned. Both bills continue investments in nutrition security, produce incentives, healI've been working through building the page based on the template, but ran into repeated tool errors while trying to inspect the source template file. Let me give you the finished page directly rather than continuing to loop on inspection.

FDA

Guidance Documents

The FDA's Human Foods Program (HFP) has released its 2026 guidance agenda, highlighting priority guidance documents planned for development or revision this year. New topics include draft guidance on labeling caffeine content in foods and beverages, questions and answers on the "healthy" claim, and food facility registration product categories. While guidance documents reflect the FDA's current thinking and are not legally binding, they often signal the agency's regulatory priorities and future policy direction. The complete list can be found at Foods Program Guidance Under Development. Stakeholders may submit comments on the proposed guidance topics through Docket FDA-2022-D-2088 on Regulations.gov.

New Commissioner Candidates - The Trump administration is reportedly narrowing its search for the next FDA Commissioner, with several prominent healthcare leaders under consideration. According to Bloomberg, leading candidates include Dr. Jeff Vacirca, CEO of New York Cancer & Blood Specialists and founder of OneOncology, who publicly supported Kennedy's nomination as HHS Secretary, and Dr. Heidi Overton, a White House policy adviser who joined the administration from the America First Policy Institute. Overton previously trained at Johns Hopkins and coauthored multiple research papers with former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary.

Other individuals reportedly being considered include former National Cancer Institute Director Dr. Norman "Ned" Sharpless and Richard Pops, CEO of Alkermes. In addition, analysts at RBC Capital Markets have identified John Crowley, CEO of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, and Dr. Stephen Ferrara, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, as additional potential candidates. The selection will be closely watched by the food, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology industries, as the next commissioner will help shape the administration's regulatory agenda across FDA's food, drug, medical product, and food safety programs.

Nutrition Lead Role - The FDA has posted a vacancy for Director of the Nutrition Center of Excellence, one of the Human Foods Program's three core centers. The position will serve as the principal advisor to the Deputy Commissioner for Human Foods on nutrition, food labeling, and critical foods. Robin McKinnon currently serves as the acting director.

STATES

Arkansas

Arkansas plans to move forward with its SNAP purchase restrictions on soda, energy drinks, and candy on July 1, despite last week's federal court ruling that invalidated USDA's approval of SNAP waivers in five other states. Because the ruling applies only to Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia, Arkansas' approved waiver remains in effect. Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the policy is intended to reduce taxpayer spending on unhealthy foods and associated healthcare costs.

California

California will implement two new food labeling laws on July 1, 2026. First, chain restaurants and other qualifying food establishments with 20 or more locations must disclose major food allergens on menus or provide a digital disclosure (e.g., QR code) accompanied by a physical alternative, such as an allergen guide or chart. California is the first state to require allergen labeling on restaurant menus.

Also taking effect is California's standardized food date labeling law (AB 954). The law limits consumer-facing date labels to "BEST if used by" or "BEST if Used or Frozen by" for food quality and "USE by" or "USE or Freeze by" for food safety, while eliminating the use of "sell by" dates on consumer-facing packaging. The changes are intended to improve label consistency and help reduce consumer confusion and food waste.

Missouri

Missouri has delayed implementation of its SNAP purchase restrictions from October 1, 2026, to February 15, 2027, to allow additional time for retailers and other stakeholders to prepare. The approved waiver will prohibit the purchase of candy, prepared desserts, certain energy drinks, and select beverages with SNAP benefits. According to state officials, the delay will provide time to finalize program infrastructure, regulatory guidance, educational materials, and a product identification list to help retailers update inventory databases and point-of-sale systems before the policy takes effect.