The Make Our Children Healthy Again strategy report — an all-encompassing plan published by the MAHA Commission, chaired by U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — was released on Tuesday.
Among other recommendations and policy reforms, including reviewing chemical additives in food, revising nutrition labels, and defining ultra-processed foods, the report directly calls upon restaurants to participate in improving the health of children.
“HHS and USDA will work with restaurants to increase education and awareness of age-appropriate healthy food options for children, consistent with the [Dietary Guidelines for Americans],” the report said.
Operators have been evaluating meal choices for kids for over two decades. In the early 2000s, restaurant chains began to respond to the backlash against unhealthy kids’ meal choices. In 2003, McDonald’s introduced fresh fruit as an alternative to fries, and in 2014, the brand began offering clementines as a Happy Meal side option. Other chains started adding milk and juice as alternatives to soda, as well as fresh apples and oranges as options for healthy sides.
Other food industry-related highlights of the report include:
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New nutrition research spearheaded by the National Institutes of Health, in partnership with the FDA, USDA, and the Administration for a Healthy America
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An update to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans
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Guidance development on diagnostics and treatment of food allergies
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New guidelines for limiting the marketing of unhealthy foods to children
The agency has already started to make several changes. In April, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, under the Trump administration, banned petroleum-based synthetic food dyes.
The Make America Healthy Again movement has also led to regional legislative and business policy changes, including stricter food labeling laws and a pushback against seed oils, which have been phased out by brands like Sweetgreen and True Food Kitchen.
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