A new report by the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission, a group established via executive order by US President Donald Trump, has highlighted the role of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and glyphosate in public health outcomes, World Grain reported.
Published on 22 May, the report said American children would experience fewer childhood chronic diseases if they lowered their intake of UPFs; reduced their exposure to chemicals, including pesticides; and were not over medicated, World Grain wrote on 23 May.
Speaking on the day the report was published, US Health and Human Services secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr was quoted as saying in a No-Till Farmer report: “We will end the childhood chronic disease crisis by attacking its root causes head-on – not just managing its symptoms.”
MAHA said the assessment “arms stakeholders and partners with clear evidence that will support the development of effective policy interventions where they can deliver the greatest impact,” No-Till Farmer wrote on 22 May.
“The American food system is safe but could be healthier,” the commission said. “Most children’s diets are dominated by ultra-processed foods (UPFs) high in sugars, chemical additives and saturated fats while lacking sufficient intakes of fruits and vegetables.”
The commission noted that nearly 70% of an American child’s calories today came from UPFs, which it defined as “packaged or ready-to-consume-products that are formulated for shelf life and/or palatability but are typically high in added sugars, refined grains, unhealthy fats and sodium, and low in fibre and essential nutrients”.
The report claimed that of the over 300,000 branded food products available in grocery stores, approximately 70% were ultra processed.
Specifically, three ingredients – ultra-processed grains, sugars and fats – were highlighted as problematic in the report.
“These engineered components, virtually non-existent a century ago, now account for over two-thirds of all calories consumed by American children,” the report said.
Other ingredients identified as contributing to the poor health of American children included emulsifiers, binders, sweeteners, colourings and preservatives - specifically, titanium dioxide, propylparaben, butylated hydroxytoluene and artificial sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose and saccharin, World Grain wrote.
“Additives in processed foods are consumed in complex combinations, where cumulative and synergistic effects may amplify harm beyond individual components,” the report said.
“Yet, testing often ignores these interactions, particularly in children. With dozens of additives consumed daily, these overlooked risks could be significantly impacting children’s health.”
Increased consumption of UPFs was due to industry consolidation, the corporatisation of the food system and regulations that disadvantaged smaller businesses, the report said.
Specifically, food industry lobbying around nutrition research and the development of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans have contributed to the current situation, according to the report.
As well as pointing out how an increase in consumption of UPFs was contributing to poor health outcomes, the commission said exposure to different chemicals was also a problem.
“The great challenge of the next decade is for government and industry around the world to understand the impacts of the cumulative chemical exposure that a child faces,” the commission said.
Chemicals of concern listed in the report included perfluoroalkoxy alkanes, also known as PFAs, microplastics, fluoride, phthalates and crop protection products like pesticides, herbicides and insecticides, with corporate influence again cited as raising concerns about the safety of some chemicals, World Grain wrote.
The report said next steps included post marketing surveillance of drugs and food ingredients, and the creation of a programme to independently replicate findings from industry-funded studies; use of artificial intelligence to monitor health and nutrition data sets for early detection of harmful exposures and childhood chronic disease trends; generally recognised as safe oversight reform; long-term nutrition trials by the National Institutes of Health; and large-scale lifestyle interventions.
In response to the report, World Grain quoted American Soybean Association director and regulatory committee chairman Alan Meadows as saying he took issue with glyphosate and atrazine use being identified as chemicals potentially harming the health of children.
“By … singling out two specific pesticides, the administration has offered activists a gift. Those groups will be poised to use the report to advance litigation aimed at taking away these tools American farmers use safely and effectively to produce our food,” Meadows said.
The Modern Ag Alliance (MAA) was also critical of the report, saying there was “clear science” behind the safety and benefits of crop protection tools used by US farmers, No-Till Farmer wrote.
MAA executive director Elizabeth Burns-Thompson was quoted as saying the report raised the possibility that the federal government could restrict farmers’ access to essential inputs, which would, “undermine existing science-based frameworks and ultimately jeopardise the affordability and security of America’s food supply.”
Without the use of glyphosate, crop yields would decline, input costs would surge by 150% and food inflation would more than double, according to the MAA.
