“The Make America Healthy Again movement that propelled Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to become Health and Human Services secretary will remain powerful because Republicans believe MAHA voters gave President Trump a margin of victory and they want MAHA votes in the 2026 midterm elections, Courtney Gaine, president and CEO of The Sugar Association, said here today.
During a panel discussion on nutrition issues including GLP-1 anti-obesity drugs, Gaine said that the MAHA movement is “not new, it’s been around for years,” pulling together people who want “real, simple food, a clean label even if it doesn’t taste good.”
MAHA was looking for a leader and it found one in Kennedy, Gaine said. Kennedy has limited power to enact MAHA’s views against sugary drinks, glyphosate, ultraprocessed foods and favoritism toward raw milk, but every time he speaks “there is a new playground for litigation,” Gaine said.”
Read the full article here: https://www.thefencepost.com/news/gaine-maha-remains-powerful-because-republicans-want-votes/
March 22, 2026
"The Feeding the Economy report affirms the vital role food and agriculture play in our nation’s economic resilience and food security. Commercial bakers have long been proud partners to American agriculture, sourcing 85 percent of their core ingredients from domestic farmers....Sponsoring organizations from the food and agriculture industries, who helped make the 2026 study possible, provided commentary on this year’s findings. The full list of sponsoring organizations includes: ...The Sugar Association"
March 10, 2026
"Courtney Gaine, president and CEO of the Sugar Association, a scientific body that supports the U.S. sugar industry, told the USDA Outlook Forum that the school meal standards taking effect next year might prohibit added sugars in kindergarten meals and could significantly restrict them in other grades. That change alone would cut sugar demand by over 130,000 short tons. The industry faces additional pressure from rising GLP-1 weight-loss drug usage, which jumped from 12% in May 2024 to 18% in November 2025, though Gaine cautioned it remains "premature to assess the impact."
March 3, 2026
"Gaine added, "There is no data to support all this." She said the focus on added sugar is often politically motivated, but food groups have not pushed back on the MAHA pressure. There is a lot of fear of retaliation, and for good reason they have not wanted to push back publicly," Gaine said. "I think it’s going to demand a coordinated, really coordinated, pushing back. Any effort up (until) now has been to go along to get along, and I don’t know if that’s going to work."
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