By Julie Tomascik
Editor

A new federal report released in late May by the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission is drawing criticism from agricultural groups. The report examines ultra-processed foods, seed oils and pesticides—calling for more research and potential shifts in food and farming policies to improve children’s health.

The 68-page report, titled Making Our Children Healthy Again, outlines what the commission describes as a “childhood chronic disease crisis,” such as rising rates of obesity and other diet-related illnesses. It urges the administration to support pro-growth policies and innovations to reverse these trends.

Agricultural groups, including the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), say the report plants distrust about food safety with the American public and ignores the scientific research demonstrating the safety of modern agricultural practices.

“It is deeply troubling for the White House to endorse a report that sows seeds of doubt and fear about our food system and farming practices, then attempts to celebrate farmers and the critical role they play in producing the safest food supply in the world,” AFBF President Zippy Duvall said.

The report raises concerns about the widespread consumption of ultra-processed foods in children’s diets, the use of seed oils like soybean and corn oil and pesticide residues—especially glyphosate, the most widely used herbicide in U.S. agriculture.

While it does not call for immediate bans, the report does urge federal agencies to modernize food and chemical safety standards, reassess cumulative exposure risks and increase transparency in how ingredients and chemicals are regulated.

The MAHA report also takes aim at the broader food and agricultural system, criticizing the influence of food and agribusiness lobbying, farm consolidation and the structure of federal crop insurance programs, citing disproportionate support for row crops over specialty crops.

Farm and industry leaders say the report paints an incomplete picture of agriculture’s role in public health and ignores decades of scientific research and regulatory oversight that demonstrate the safety of the U.S. food supply.

“The report spotlights outlier studies and presents unproven theories that feed a false narrative, and only then does it acknowledge a mountain of evidence about the safety of our food system,” Duvall said.

Although the MAHA Commission calls for collaboration with agriculture to improve health outcomes, farmers and ranchers were left out of conversation that directly affects them.

“Farmers are identified as ‘critical partners,’ yet were excluded from development of the report, despite many requests for a seat at the table,” Duvall said. “As a farmer myself, I can confidently say that farmers and ranchers share the goal of improving health outcomes in America. They’re dedicated to continuous improvement, guided by sound science and technological advances.”

The MAHA Commission was established by President Donald Trump though an executive order. It was tasked with studying and identifying possible causes of chronic disease among American children.

The commission is expected to release a second report in the coming months that details a federal strategy and policy recommendations to address the causes and overall children’s health.