Bonus Episode! A Conversation w Former FDA Chief David Kessler. Did He Just Give RFK Jr a Tool to Fight the Food Industry?

Our guest today is David Kessler, the former FDA commissioner who once devised a strategy to take on Big Tobacco. Now, he’s back with a bold game plan for MAHA and President Trump to challenge the makers of ultra-processed foods.

While making food healthier is central to MAHA’s mission, critics say its early wins, like persuading companies to remove certain food dyes, are a positive first step but won’t significantly improve public health. Kessler argues that RFK Jr.’s FDA already has both the scientific evidence and the legal authority right now to require food makers to prove that the ingredients in processed foods are safe.

It’s a plan that would force a confrontation with Big Food. Is Kessler calling Kennedy’s bluff or handing him a powerful tool? Could this strategy survive legal and political pushback? And if it did, what would our supermarket shelves look like then?

Hosts:

Brinda Adhikari

Tom Johnson

Maggie Bartlett

Dr. Mark Abdelmalek

Guest:

Dr. David Kessler, former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration

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