On January 20th, President Donald J. Trump and Vice President JD Vance entered the White House to begin their term from 2025 to 2029. One man stands out from the rest of the crowd on their lengthy list of federal nominees: Robert F. Kennedy. Kennedy was born on January 17, 1954, and grew up at the Kennedy Compound (Hyannis Port, Massachusetts) and the family estate, Hickory Hill (McLean, Virginia). At the age of nine, he learned of his uncle John F. Kennedy’s assassination and later watched his father die after being shot during his presidential campaign. This caused trauma that led to drug use in his younger years, such as a 14-year heroin addiction beginning when he was 15 and ending only when he entered rehab after an arrest for possession of the drug. After removing himself from that lifestyle, he attended Harvard and began a campaign of legal victories while volunteering for the Hudson River Fisherman’s Association. He founded and directed the Environmental Litigation Clinic at Pace University School of Law, where he forced companies to comply with the Clean Water Act through court cases and lawsuits. His career has been defined by environmental protection through the creation of legal support for pro-environment causes. He became a controversial character because of his many theories about vaccines, allergies, the Kennedy murders, and more. Within the past two years he has had a failed run for presidency, endorsed Trump, and was nominated to be the Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Although there are many issues Robert Kennedy has been involved with, one of his less controversial takes is his focus on banning certain food dyes. In an article by USA, the author states that Kennedy plans to reduce diet-related chronic diseases by “banning hundreds of food additives and chemicals, such as food dyes,” (Cullen, Margie). In an academic journal published by Food Review International, the authors cover the two forms of regulations placed upon food dyes: international and national. On the international level, the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) acts as a suggestion committee to the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization on the matter of food additives. On the federal level, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) controls which dues are allowed in the US. According to a figure produced by the article showing major countries and dyes, the EU has 15 dyes allowed while the FDA only allows 9, the second lowest amount behind the 8 allowed in India. A Robert Kennedy administration could make the USA number one in that regard. The FDA also has massive influence on the WHO and FAO and the US economy makes the North American market the second largest in the world, meaning banning food dyes in the US could affect ban efforts in many other countries.
In addition, according to PBS News, Kennedy plans on banning ultra-processed foods from schools, such as “a lot of things you would expect: sodas, frozen pizzas, hot dogs, but also things you might not expect: flavored yogurts, plant milks, whole grain breads, and cereals,” (Brangham, William). Well, at least we can get soda at the supermarket, right? Robert Kennedy has declared a war on toxic chemicals in our food. According to an X post by Robert F. Kennedy – Health Secretary Parody, on January 20th, Robert Kennedy would be “BANNING all consumption of Diet Coke in the United States.” I interviewed corn syrup allergen victim and school Diet Coke purchaser Gordie Kaiton (‘26), who showed me a video on aspartame found in Diet Coke. The creator describes how aspartame affects your body by producing methanol (which can cause blindness), aspartic acid (fuels cancer cells), and phenylalanine (which can give some people seizures). He also notes, though, that 16x more aspartame can be found in a single portion of meat than in Diet Coke. This has led to divided speculation on whether or not it should be allowed and if Kennedy would ban it. Ms. Brasic, an FHE teacher who has admitted to drinking 3-6 cans of Diet Coke a day, stated “I would be disappointed in a government banning Diet Coke when tobacco and alcohol are still legal”. She also noted how students are drinking less soda now, transitioning into more energy drinks and water bottles. Although tobacco and alcohol are illegal for minors, this debate does raise the question of personal and economic freedom and public health. When does the government go too far in food regulation?
