Allison Schuster praises Means’ MAHA work as advocates cite food security and glyphosate
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had promised the release of a first-ever government definition of ultraprocessed food in April. Instead, FDA acting commissioner Kyle Diamantas told a conference that month that defining the class “is really hard.” In August, Kennedy staffers again suggested a major announcement on the issue was imminent; the announcement focused instead on a proposal bringing greater scrutiny to food additives, making only a passing mention of ultraprocessed foods.
Despite Means’ efforts, the administration’s progress on food reforms has been slow going. Leading voices in the Make America Healthy Again movement have expressed discontent with what they say is the administration’s lack of progress on a variety of issues, including food security and regulating the weed killer glyphosate.
Calley Means, a top adviser to Kennedy and a chief advocate for the movement, resigned from his position with the Trump administration on Thursday. In a statement, Means did not say why he was leaving. He said he “leaves with tremendous respect” for President Donald Trump and Kennedy. “The past two years have seen historic policy and cultural change to confront the chronic disease crisis and healthcare incentives that profit from us being sick,” Means said, adding, “This movement is in the first inning and just getting started.”
White House spokeswoman Allison Schuster said the Trump administration is “grateful” for Means’ time and that “he has done a fantastic job for the MAHA movement.” A Health and Human Services representative did not respond to a request for comment.
Health activist Kelly Ryerson, a leader of American Regeneration who is also known as Glyphosate Girl on social media, said she was “impressed that he completed over two years at HHS fighting the food battle, despite all of the obstacles presented by corporate interests.” “At the heart of MAHA is a shared belief that the nation’s health must not be sacrificed to corporate profit, and that a preventable slide into chronic disease is a threat to America itself,” she said.
Zen Honeycutt, founder of Moms Across America, said Means would be missed by her organization, which operates local and national campaigns warning against pollution, water use and electricity costs associated with data center construction. Honeycutt said Means “brought an energy and fearlessness to the Hill, fighting for our children to have healthy food in schools and for America’s health.”
Means was hired as a White House adviser early in the second Trump administration. From his perch at the Health and Human Services Department, he criticized the nation’s leading physician groups, federal agencies and government scientists, saying they protect only their own interests.
Means’ emphasis on food was also a source of frustration for other figures within the MAHA movement, who wanted to see Kennedy focus on “medical freedom” issues. For many in the movement, that meant rolling back federal recommendations and approvals for vaccines.
Means is the brother of wellness influencer, author and entrepreneur Dr. Casey Means, who failed to be confirmed as surgeon general earlier this year after doubts were raised over her vaccine stance.
Means and his sister came to prominence within the MAHA movement by arguing that ultraprocessed foods, additives and pesticides could be blamed for many of the chronic health conditions facing Americans. Means brought those arguments into the administration and frequently clashed with senior White House officials who worried about alienating the powerful food industry.
The administration’s food reforms remain slow going. Means left without a stated reason, and the friction inside the movement over the emphasis on food versus “medical freedom” remains unresolved.