RFK Jr. Touts Medicaid Meal Provider Despite Ultraprocessed Food Concerns

Company’s “Healthy” Meals Contain Additives and High Sodium, Say Nutrition Experts

WASHINGTON —
U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is promoting a meal delivery company as part of his vision to improve American health. But nutrition experts say the meals he’s endorsing are highly processed—packed with the same additives and ingredients Kennedy has long criticized.

In a video shared Monday from his official government account, Kennedy praised Mom’s Meals, a company that provides prepackaged, ready-to-eat meals to Medicaid and Medicare recipients. Speaking after touring the company’s facility in Oklahoma, he commended the company for delivering food “without additives” and called it “one of the solutions for making our country healthy again.”

But a closer look reveals a more complicated reality.

Heavily Processed Meals Marketed as Wholesome

An Associated Press review of the company’s menu, which includes items like chicken bacon ranch pasta and French toast sticks with ham patties, found that many meals contain additives and ingredients that qualify them as ultraprocessed. These are not meals most people could replicate at home using fresh ingredients.

Marion Nestle, a nutrition expert and professor emerita at New York University, reviewed the meals and found them filled with additives and high levels of sodium—and in some cases, sugar and saturated fats. While the meals avoid artificial dyes and high-fructose corn syrup (both frequent targets of Kennedy’s past criticism), Nestle said they remain far from healthy.

“It is perfectly possible to make meals like this with real foods and no ultra-processing additives,” Nestle said. “What’s so sad is that they don’t have to be this way.”

Company Responds to Criticism

In a statement, Mom’s Meals spokesperson Teresa Roof said the company avoids certain ingredients common in ultraprocessed food—such as synthetic food dyes and banned preservatives. However, she did not address other additives flagged by nutritionists.

Meanwhile, Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, defended the meals, calling them “a healthy alternative” to what many low-income Americans might otherwise find in grocery stores.

Meal Delivery for At-Risk Populations

Mom’s Meals is one of several companies providing “medically tailored” meals to people enrolled in Medicaid or Medicare. These services are typically reserved for individuals recovering from hospitalization or managing chronic illnesses like diabetes or cancer. Some Medicare Advantage plans also cover the program.

While the total cost of these programs to taxpayers is unclear, a 2023 investigation by STAT News found that several states are spending millions of dollars annually on meal deliveries. The report found many of these so-called “dietitian approved” meals still contained high levels of salt, sugar, or fat—contributing to the very health problems they’re meant to help prevent.

Kennedy’s Health Platform Faces Scrutiny

Kennedy has made health and nutrition a cornerstone of his public image. He frequently warns about the dangers of ultraprocessed foods and promotes whole, natural diets as the foundation of his “Make America Healthy Again” campaign.

In a recent post, he claimed the U.S. had “lost the most basic of all freedoms — the freedom that comes from being healthy.” His message has gained traction among wellness-focused voters and segments of the conservative base.

But Kennedy’s enthusiastic support for Mom’s Meals appears to contradict his own messaging—raising questions about consistency and credibility.

The Complexity of Ultraprocessed Foods

Experts caution that defining what qualifies as “ultraprocessed” isn’t always straightforward. Most foods undergo some form of processing—whether it’s freezing, fermentation, or pasteurization. What distinguishes ultraprocessed foods are industrial ingredients, chemical stabilizers, and flavor enhancers that go far beyond what home cooks use.

Critics argue that while companies like Mom’s Meals provide a logistical solution for food access, they fall short on nutritional quality. For Kennedy, who has long framed himself as a champion of clean eating and public health, the contradiction between message and endorsement could prove politically costly.

“These meals might be better than fast food,” said one health policy analyst, “but calling them a solution to America’s health crisis is a stretch.”