Lifestyle Sports: Latest from Food Politics: The government is actively promoting meat and dairy intake

By Marion Nestle

February 04 2026

The government is actively promoting meat and dairy intake

The new Dietary Guidelines for Americans actively promote meat and dairy intake, especially full-fat dairy. The USDA has long acted as a marketing arm of those industries through its research and promotion (checkoff) programs.

But the current government takes this new levels.

Here are the Secretaries of HHS and USDA:

More on the milk mustache campaign here, here, here, and here.

And how about RFK Jr’s birthday celebration:

Earlier, in 2025, USDA announced its plan to “fortify the American beef industry.”

USDA Action: USDA FNS is encouraging schools, sponsors, and institutions participating in any USDA Child Nutrition Programs (CNP) to source and serve locally grown foods, including beef, in program meals.,,,These efforts will improve access to local foods, including high-quality meat, for American students, and will improve child health and nutrition and reinvigorate American livestock producers by better connecting them with USDA’s Child Nutrition Programs.
USDA Action: Together with HHS, ensure the 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) reflect sound science and practical advice for the American family, including encouraging protein as the foundation for every meal.

Comment

I chalk all this up to the extraordinary lobbying power of the meat and dairy industries. Fruit and vegetable growers (“specialty crops”) do not have this kind of clout. Will eating more meat and dairy foods Make America Healthy Again? That seems highly unlikely. In my reading of the evidence, we—and the planet—would be healthier getting more of our calories from plant foods.I

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