Podcast Summary: Food Safety Matters Ep. 209 – Helena Bottemiller Evich: The MAHA Effect on American Food Policy

Date: January 13, 2026
Host: Food Safety Magazine (Adrienne)
Guest: Helena Bottemiller Evich, Food Policy Journalist, Founder of Food Fix

Episode Overview

This episode unpacks the unprecedented changes in American food and nutrition policy over the past year—particularly the influence of the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement, the Trump-Kennedy alliance, and their impact on federal nutrition guidelines, food safety priorities, regulation, and public sentiment. Renowned food policy journalist Helena Bottemiller Evich offers an insider’s perspective on the new 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, the ongoing challenges at the FDA, the recent infant formula safety failures, SNAP program changes, the politics of food additives and processed foods, and what the future may hold for both the MAHA movement and the American food system.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The New Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs) and MAHA’s Influence

• Biggest Changes & Political Significance
  • The 2025–2030 DGAs were released with high-level public attention, “unveiled at the White House” with a new website, realfood.gov, and a reimagined, upside-down food pyramid (04:11–05:25).
  • The government is “telling people to move away from highly processed packaged foods, which... are the vast majority of the U.S. food supply.” (04:57, Helena)
• Controversies & Mixed Response
  • Significant increases in recommended protein intake and reduced prominence of grains and carbs; yet many core recommendations, like for saturated fat (<10% of calories), remain unchanged despite political rhetoric (06:09–07:14).
  • The semantics of “highly processed” vs. “ultra processed” foods are still unresolved by regulatory agencies, which frustrates both policy experts and industry (08:49–10:26).
    • “You now have two different acronyms. We’ve got UPF [ultra processed foods] and we’ve got HPF [highly processed foods].” – Helena (09:59)
  • The definition used in the guidelines is controversial with industry: “Engineered food-like item... primarily from substances extracted from food... refined sugars, grains, starches or oils and... chemical additives.” (11:51, Adrienne)
• Consumer Impact
  • Most Americans don’t actually follow the DGAs, yet the messaging is consequential in nudging trends, shaping industry, and setting policy tone (10:27–11:51).

2. FDA Structural Failures and the Ongoing Infant Formula Crisis

• Historical & Recent Failures
  • Helena recounts the 2022 Abbott infant formula crisis and how it led to FDA reorganization, followed by “mass layoffs” and recent safety issues (13:38–15:04).
• Change Under New Leadership
  • New FDA Human Foods Program head Kyle Diamantis is seen as an improvement due to clearer leadership and better crisis communication (15:04–17:30).
  • However, persistent problems remain: agency underfunding, lack of expert staff, and a budget “smaller than the Dallas school district” despite the scale of responsibility (19:09–20:19, Helena).
    • “The foods program, I don’t think, has ever been funded at the level that would be commensurate with the job American consumers already expect...” – Helena (19:10)
• Challenges Moving Forward
  • Even the current deregulatory administration has asked Congress for increased FDA food safety funding, underscoring the challenge (20:19–21:39).

3. The Rise and Realignment of the MAHA Movement

• Origin and Political Shift
  • The Trump-Kennedy alliance in August 2024, publicly “endorsed with literal fireworks,” catalyzed MAHA within the GOP and among voters “especially parents on both sides of the aisle.” (22:44–26:08)
  • MAHA’s sweeping agenda includes not just food additives and sugar but “raw milk, anti-fluoride, chemtrails, vaccine skepticism—a coalition of concerns.” (26:08–26:30, Helena)
• Breaking Partisan Norms
  • Food policy issues now resonate across political lines; even “MAGA” voters support bans on food dyes and ultra processed foods in schools (25:58–27:23).
  • Both blue and red states are pushing similar “ingredient ban” legislation, a massive realignment from the typical political divide (27:23–28:30).
    • “So many of these ideas started on the left and were kind of crunchy granola... it’s just no longer left-coded.” – Helena (28:30)
• Grassroots and Industry Tension
  • The broad popularity of MAHA food policies, particularly among “MAHA moms,” contrasts with the food industry’s resistance and the unfinished definitions and implementation at the regulatory level (26:30–29:26).

4. Policy Accomplishments and Mechanisms

• Substantive Changes So Far
  • Despite big rhetoric, “not that much has actually changed” in formal regulation—most movement is in rhetoric and state-level SNAP restrictions (30:21–32:57).
    • “If you actually look at the actions taken, not that much has actually changed.” – Helena (30:21)
  • Most notable: USDA now lets at least 18 states restrict SNAP purchases of sugary drinks, candy, and processed foods at state discretion—without new federal regulation (32:06–32:57).
• Limits of Regulatory Approach
  • Major reforms like GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) ingredient review are slowly moving, but systemic changes require formal, enforceable regulation (32:57–36:42).
  • Tension exists over reliance on “voluntary industry cooperation” vs. enforceable action—criticism from both advocates and industry (36:42–37:31).

5. Shortcomings and Blind Spots

• Microbial Food Safety Neglected
  • “There is no focus on microbial food safety... keeping food safe in the traditional sense is not really part of it. They’re much more focused on chemical additives, contaminants.” (37:31–38:08, Helena)
  • Issues like pathogens, heavy metals, and microplastics are largely ignored or lack concrete action (39:03–40:51).
• Inconsistencies & Gaps
  • Some concerns (microplastics, certain pesticides) get little government attention or response, frustrating even the MAHA base (40:51–41:50).
  • “Nobody pays attention to food safety until there’s a crisis. The way you have a safe food supply is to have consistent, boring focus on things like keeping pathogens out of food.” – Helena (41:19)

6. The Challenge of Deregulation and “Culture Change”

• Can MAHA Succeed Without Regulation?
  • “I don’t think there’s any vision of the MAHA agenda succeeding without some level of regulation.” – Helena (42:19)
  • Top officials argue for cultural and educational shifts, but systemic changes (school meals, PFAS, GRAS reform) require real rules and enforcement (42:19–43:54).
• Consumer and Generational Factors
  • Cultural and generational shifts (e.g., Gen Z and millennials seeking different foods, rise of GLP-1 medications) may amplify or undermine MAHA goals (43:54–44:41).

7. Looking Forward: Future Impact and Longevity

• Will MAHA’s Popularity Last?
  • The “apex” of MAHA power may have passed, with 2026 set as a “test year to suss out where it’s just talk and where it will lead to substantive federal policy change.” (45:08–48:52, Helena)
  • Policymaking may be fundamentally altered: “It’s hard to see how you put that back in the bottle. Maybe we talk about food additives and nutrition in schools like we do taxes and health care.” (46:10–48:32)
• Electoral Stakes
  • The 2026 midterms may decide whether MAHA-minded voters continue to shape Republican policy and whether food policy remains central in U.S. political debate (49:38–50:03).

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Government Messaging (Dietary Guidelines)

“The biggest takeaway was essentially that the government is telling people to move away from highly processed packaged foods, which... are the vast majority of the U.S. food supply.”
—Helena Bottemiller Evich (04:57)

On Political Realignment

“The right has now granted permission... before things like banning ultra processed foods in school meals, or getting synthetic food dyes out— that was a left issue. Now it’s overwhelmingly popular among Democrats, Republicans, and independents.”
—Helena Bottemiller Evich (24:37)

On FDA’s Structural Issues

"The budget for the foods program, [Diamantis] says, is like, smaller than the Dallas school district... the foods program, I don't think, has ever been funded at the level that would be commensurate with the job.”
—Helena Bottemiller Evich (19:10)

On the SNAP Changes

“As of this month... millions of low-income consumers... are no longer able to buy certain foods with their EBT benefits. That is a big policy change.”
—Helena Bottemiller Evich (32:07)

On Blind Spots

“There is no focus on microbial food safety... keeping food safe in the traditional sense is not really part of it. They’re much more focused on chemical additives, contaminants.”
—Helena Bottemiller Evich (37:31)

On MAHA’s Future Trajectory

“2026... I think it’s going to be a really key year to suss out where is this just talk and where is it going to lead to substantive federal policy change.”
—Helena Bottemiller Evich (36:37)

Suggested Timestamps for Key Segments

• [04:11–07:14] — New Dietary Guidelines: what changed and why it matters
• [08:49–11:51] — Defining “ultra processed” and “highly processed” foods; industry blowback
• [13:38–20:19] — Infant formula crises, FDA organizational and funding woes
• [22:44–29:26] — The political birth and cross-partisan growth of MAHA
• [30:21–32:57] — Concrete MAHA-era policy changes—state-level SNAP purchase restrictions
• [37:31–41:50] — MAHA’s chemical focus vs. neglect of traditional food safety
• [45:08–48:52] — Predictions: Will MAHA endure? What happens politically next?

Conclusion

Helena Bottemiller Evich’s interview offers a nuanced, critical, and deeply informed look at how the MAHA movement is re-writing the rules—and the rhetoric—of American food policy. While the movement has energized a broad portion of the public and political class around food safety, nutrition, and chemical exposure, real regulatory change has been slow and sometimes inconsistent, and glaring blind spots (like microbial food safety) remain. The episode closes with big questions about whether MAHA’s popularity and momentum will last, if it can bridge its deregulatory contradictions, and how the coming year’s policy battles and 2026 midterms will shape America’s food future.

For an ongoing, expert eye on these evolving issues, Helena’s Food Fix newsletter comes highly recommended.