Maha movement helps to kill bill seeking US food-safety rollbacks

Source: The Guardian

Sat 8 Nov 2025 08.00 EST
Last modified on Sat 8 Nov 2025 17.29 EST


A bipartisan group of public health advocates have defeated a proposal to kill state food safety laws that was pushed by what some critics have called a “faux Maha” big-food influence operation.

The industry-funded group, called Americans for Ingredient Transparency (AFIT), suggests it is part of a grassroots Make America Healthy Again (Maha) movement, but opponents say it is waging a campaign on behalf of big food companies that Maha figures typically criticize – ConAgra, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Hormel and Nestlé, among other food giants.

Maha is the health movement, led by health secretary Robert F Kennedy, that aims to improve Americans’ health. AFIT is headed by a former Trump administration official and industry lobbyist. An AFIT video on its website shows footage of children and parents holding Maha signs, the group claims its mission is “in the vein” of Maha, and rightwing media has called AFIT a Maha group.

AFIT pushed for draft legislation written by Republican senator Roger Marshall, called the Better Food Disclosure Act, that initially included language that would kill state laws that require truth-in-labeling for toxic food ingredients. Amid backlash and pressure from Maha leaders, public health non-profits and a bipartisan group of state legislators, Marshall this week struck the language from the bill, which includes other changes to US Food and Drug Administration rules.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/08/maha-food-safety-laws-us