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Whatever you think of the incoming administration — and putting my own opinion aside — it's clear the food system needs a serious reset. And with nominees Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Brooke Rollins set to take over the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture, respectively, we can expect nothing less than a crusade for change. Trump recently said that he is going to let Kennedy "go wild on health. I'm going to let him go wild on the food … ." Given this, coupled with the fact that Rollins is set to lead the development of much-needed new food standards for school meals and national dietary guidelines (75% of U.S. adults are overweight or obese), here are my thoughts and predictions for helping food companies and executives deal with the changes that may come over the next few years:

  1. The war on sugar and the soda tax: Already there are cities in the U.S. that tax soda due to its negative health implications. Food and beverage companies should get ready for more cities and communities like Philadelphia, Seattle, Boulder and San Francisco that are at war against diabetes, not to mention countries like the U.K., France, Thailand and many others that have implemented tiered taxes based on the amounts of sugar in a particular product. Will soda become the next tobacco? Probably not in the near term. But Kennedy knows that sugar is one of the main culprits in creating the diabesity (diabetes and obesity) epidemic in the U.S. — and it is costing Americans hundreds of billions of dollars a year, not to mention longevity decreases. Big sugary drink brands will continue to lose market share while better-for-you sodas like Zevia, Olipop and Poppi will slowly take over. At a minimum, get ready for the potential of higher-priced sodas in more locations as cities begin to take better care of their citizenry. It won't be because of inflation, it will be because your city council decided to follow the guidelines of Kennedy and Rollins to "Make America Healthy Again."
  2. The war on processed foods: Kennedy has advocated for eliminating ultra-processed foods — specifically, products that are altered and include added fats, starches and sugars in products such as frozen pizzas and sugary breakfast cereals, which can be linked to health problems like cancer, heart disease and diabesity. Big food has never really had much oversight from the government (whether Democrat or Republican), so this could be a big change for companies that are used to operating with little regulation. While it's going to be difficult for Kennedy and Rollins to make a big dent into big food in a few years, they will, I believe, help create awareness and dialogue among Americans around what ingredients are healthy and not healthy. Over time, we will continue to see market share losses among ultra-processed foods brands, which will once again open the door for better-for-you brands.
  3. The war on pesticides: Kennedy has promised to overhaul the federal public health industry, and singled out the food sector for the "mass poisoning of American children" through their unhealthy ingredients. As a presidential candidate, he indicated that he wants to restrict the use of pesticides and eliminate "seed oils" in food, saying he's ready to reverse 80 years of farm policy that has promoted industrial agriculture and "factory farming." He said the "FDA's war on public health is about to end." This is real, especially since Kennedy won a 2018 lawsuit against Monsanto, which paid $290 million to a man who likely contracted non-Hodgkin's lymphoma from a herbicide (glyphosate) in the weed killer Roundup, which is used on more than half of all corn and soybean crops in the United States. Get ready to see organic product sales increase and changes — who knows, maybe even taxes or heavier regulations — for companies who use pesticides in their production.
  4. The war to reform crop subsidies: Kennedy has said that our "subsidy program is so backward that less than 2% of farm subsidies go to fruits and vegetables." The government subsidizes farmers who grow crops such as corn, soybeans and wheat to the tune of billions of dollars, which makes them artificially cheap and end up in processed foods, leading to the growth of such ingredients as soybean oil and high fructose corn syrup as major sources for health issues. Might there be a subsidy shift? Rollins will have to weigh in here, thereby creating incentives for farmers and producers to grow better-for-you ingredients less expensively and thus penalizing traditional crops such as corn and wheat. At a minimum, get ready for a serious lobby blitz from big food to protect their turf as they simultaneously diversify their portfolios by investing in better-for-you supply chains and brands as these better-for-you ingredients might be poised for subsidies.

Whatever happens in the coming years, RFK Jr. and Rollins are poised to make some serious changes, which may have real — and hopefully positive — consequences for our country.

Fred Haberman is the co-founder and CEO of Haberman, a Minneapolis-based marketing agency that has helped mainstream organic food in the U.S. and pioneer sustainable agriculture practices through modern storytelling.