The Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Commission, established by President Trump’s White House Executive Order in February is expected to release its initial assessment to identify the nature of childhood chronic disease in the U.S. and compare the U.S. to other nations. There is concern that due to past advocacy critical to the use of pesticides by the chair of the MAHA Commission, Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., that pesticides will be unfairly spotlighted in the MAHA initial assessment even though reams of credible and sound scientific data exists supporting their judicious use in growing a safe, abundant, and affordable food supply and protecting public health.
In the event the report is critical of pesticides, NAAA, CropLife America and numerous other responsible manufacturers and users of pesticides are reiterating the availability of educational materials supporting the importance of pesticides and the safety of their use when applied professionally and responsibly. NAAA’s About website page includes substantive information on the importance of the aerial application industry, and the need and safety of using pesticides. Additional information for NAAA members on the environmental safety of pesticides may be found here.
The MAHA Commission also includes but is not limited to USDA Secretary Rollins and EPA Administrator Zeldin, two cabinet officials that support pesticide use in ag production and that thoroughly test pesticides for safety, respectively. After the initial assessment is released this week, the Commission will submit a strategy with policy recommendations on the potential causes of chronic disease in children by August 12. NAAA supports the MAHA movement’s goals to improve health outcomes for Americans while protecting our most vulnerable populations, including children and NAAA supports sound, proven, scientific, and reliable data to support policy recommendations related to pesticides.
HHS Secretary Kennedy has faced pointed questions on his stance opposing vaccines directly contradicting that of medical professionals. In an article in last week's Wall Street Journal, it was documented that Kennedy’s attempt to label pesticides as a potential cause of U.S. health woes has attracted pushback from some White House and agency officials who are concerned the move would disrupt the food supply chain. Kennedy sued over pesticides in his past career as an environmental litigator. He helped win an initial $289 million verdict in 2018 against Monsanto, then the maker of Roundup, for a groundskeeper who developed cancer and said he wasn’t warned properly about the herbicide’s risks. The U.S. EPA has said glyphosate doesn’t cause cancer.
Some facts on the judicious use of pesticides includes:
- The pesticides used by American farmers are vigorously studied and highly regulated by the EPA. They are thoroughly vetted by food, health, and environmental scientists to ensure that they do not pose an unreasonable risk when used as directed and “that no harm will result from” exposure to pesticide residues on food.
- The EPA requires models and study protocols subject to extensive public scrutiny and independent scientific peer review. EPA’s review process emphasizes protecting the most vulnerable populations – most often children – from pesticide risks related to exposure and toxicity.
- Annual testing from scientists at USDA and FDA finds that more than 99% of food and feed products comply with stringent pesticide residue standards. All pesticide products are monitored and are subject to review whenever new scientific data becomes available to help ensure they meet current scientific standards.
- Access to well-regulated pesticides is critical in allowing American farmers to provide healthy, nutritious, affordable food.
