Dairy Industry Engaged in MAHA, Dietary Guidelines Process

Dairy producers are closely watching for signs of how agricultural and nutrition policy may evolve, especially when it comes to making America healthy again. President of the National Milk Producers Federation, Gregg Doud,

“What they are talking about is really an important change in how we feed ourselves as human beings, and the fact that the you know, we've got to get away from all this ultra processed stuff that we're in, I think everybody kind of agrees with that. It's just a matter of how you define it, and I don't know what that is and what that looks like, and we need to get back to more protein in our diet. But I think for us in dairy, there is this huge recognition that fat and dairy isn't bad for you. It's good for you. It's brain food. It's a critical thing that helps your body function.”

Doud said he expects future federal dietary guidelines to better reflect consumer behavior.

“If you look at the grocery store, whole milk and 2% in terms of fluid milk captured the vast majority of the shelf space. What does that mean? That means that consumers know that that's you know, that's what they buy because they know it's good for you. They know that's what is good for their kids, etc. We've got to get the dietary guidelines to be more of a reflection of what was really going on in the real world.”

Doud says the administration's health messaging reflects a broader shift towards Whole Foods and away from ultra processed products.