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Food & Nutrition
White House Highlights MAHA Accomplishments
The White House and HHS published an updated list of the Trump Administration’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) accomplishments over the past 18 months, which includes a list of ‘Top 10 MAHA Accomplishments’ published on the White House’s MAHA webpage. Among the actions highlighted are the release of the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, efforts to voluntarily phase out artificial food dyes, access to whole milk in schools, approval of state SNAP food restriction waivers, publication of FDA’s proposed rule to reform the Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) process, and efforts to reduce childhood exposure to PFAS, microplastics, fluoride, lead, and other contaminants in food.
USDA Launches Harvest to Hallways Initiative to Invest in Child Nutrition Programs
USDA held a ‘Harvest to Hallways’ rally to highlight several new actions the Administration is taking to improve school meals. The newly announced initiative includes up to $70 million in investments in school cafeteria infrastructure, an effort to expand schools’ use of local food procurement options, and up to $25 million in additional Farm to School Grants for FY 2026. At HHS, the Department also announced new investments in research to help schools improve the nutritional quality of their meals and highlighted that several states have adopted USDA’s voluntary Pledge for Healthier School Meals. During the rally, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. also shared that the agency’s forthcoming school meals proposed rule is ‘close to finalizing,’ expected to further reduce added sugars, shift from refined to whole grains, emphasize high-quality protein, reduce reliance on highly processed foods, encourage whole fruit over juice, and make it easier for schools to prepare meals from scratch.
Separately, USDA’s Food and Nutrition Administration (FNA) launched an online toolkit for food industry partners that supply products to school meals and other providers who participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program or the Summer Food Service Program. The resource hub is intended to help the food industry understand meal-pattern requirements, how products can count toward those requirements, and food product documentation used in the programs.
Trump Administration Appeals Judge’s Decision that Blocked SNAP Waivers in Five States
The Trump Administration appealed a federal court ruling that vacated USDA’s approval of SNAP food restriction waivers in Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia. In June 2026, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled that USDA lacked statutory authority to approve waivers allowing states to exclude certain foods and beverages from SNAP eligibility, blocking implementation of the restrictions in the five states. The appeal will proceed before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, which will review the district court’s decision regarding USDA’s authority to approve the waivers.
NIH to Host Seminar on Food is Medicine Research to Address Chronic Disease
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is hosting a virtual Food is Medicine (FIM) seminar on September 22, 2026, to discuss the current state of the science and research gaps and opportunities to advance FIM research, including interventions to promote health and reduce the burden of diet-related chronic diseases. During the seminar, speakers will evaluate the current evidence across key FIM intervention models, including produce prescription programs, medically tailored meals and groceries and teaching kitchens; discuss outcomes and data elements relevant to FIM research and practice, and address research gaps; and highlight opportunities for interdisciplinary and multisector collaboration and future FIM research.
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