Donald Trump just announced Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (RFK) as his pick for Secretary of Health and Human Services. Aside from his anti-vaccine conspiracies, RFK’s appointment might affect the cost of food with added preservatives.
In a YouTube video, RFK criticized big food corporations for adding tartrazine (Yellow # 5) to several food products and medicinal goods. He claims that America would be healthier if all the chemical additives were “taken out” of these food items. Without nuance, RFK rooted out that food coloring is causing the rising health problems in America. He cited a rising maternal mortality rate, mental health issues, and autoimmune diseases.
More research is needed to see if tartrazine has a causal relationship with ADHD and other autoimmune diseases that RFK claims it has. Nobody denies that kids should be able to eat more whole foods. Nobody denies that kids should be able to eat more whole foods. That still doesn’t mean RFK’s claims are confirmed by experts.
MAHA may cost a lot
‘Make America Healthy Again’ (MAHA) is RFK’s biggest agenda. The bigger question is: can Americans afford it?
One concerned social media user theorized that the price of food may increase under Trump’s administration because of this push for organic food. She wrote, “This looks like eight dollar eggs to me.” She cites that RFK might push back against preservatives that would increase shelf life. In addition to that, she worried that farm workers would be halved. Deportations of undocumented migrants include those who work in farms, after all. Tariffs on food packaging may also increase grocery prices. Overall, this scenario seems like the perfect storm for hyperinflation.
Secondly, another important question to ask is—to what end will RFK pursue in his quest for MAHA? Because in line with his plans, RFK intends to disrupt what he calls “pesticide-intensive agriculture.” Several farm groups, such as the American Farm Bureau Federation, expressed their concerns to the Senate about RFK’s misinformed claims. Hopefully, pseudoscience doesn’t prevail.
Published: Nov 15, 2024 01:04 am