Food fight

By Christopher R. Gibbs

There’s a food fight on the horizon, and U.S. farmers stand to lose.

After being floated for U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was ultimately confirmed as Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). According to the HHS website, their mission is to enhance the health and well-being of all Americans by providing effective health and human services and fostering sound and sustained advances in the sciences underlying medicine, public health, and social services.

A tall order for Kennedy, as his stance on America’s food system has been a blend of alarmism, conspiracy theories, and musings about increased regulation on U.S. agriculture.

Agriculture in the crosshairs

In supporting Kennedy for a cabinet post, the president wanted him to ‘go wild’ on health, food, and medicine. That must have been music to Kennedy’s ears as he’s spent his career promising to unravel 80 years of farm policy, claiming seed oils and sweeteners from soybeans and corn were responsible for a health crisis in America, and stating under oath in 2009 that hog farmers are more of a threat to the American people than Osama bin Laden.… Continue reading