RFK Jr. says Starbucks will ‘MAHA its menu' — and praises chain for avoiding artificial dyes and flavors
Starbucks' top executive has agreed to further align its menu with the Trump administration's health goals under its 'Make America Healthy Again' initiative, according to Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Kennedy, who has been examining the nation's food system to address the root causes of childhood chronic disease, said in a post on X that he met with Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol on Tuesday, who 'shared the company's plans to further MAHA its menu.'
During the discussion, Kennedy said he was 'pleased to learn that Starbucks' food and beverages already avoid artificial dyes, artificial flavors, high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners and other additives.'
Starbucks said the meeting with Kennedy was productive. The company, which announced earlier this year that it was cutting 30% of its menu in order to simplify operations and drive innovation, has already been testing healthier drink options such as a sugar-free vanilla latte topped with protein banana cold foam.
3 Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol.
X/@SecKennedy
3 Starbucks said the meeting with Kennedy was productive.
Bloomberg via Getty Images
'Our diverse menu of high-quality foods and beverages empower customers to make informed nutritional decisions, with transparency on ingredients, calories, and more. Plus, we keep it real — no high fructose corn syrup, artificial dyes, flavors, or artificial trans-fats,' Starbucks said in a statement to FOX Business.
Under the MAHA initiative, the administration said it would 'lead a coordinated transformation of our food, health, and scientific systems' that it believes will 'ensure that all Americans — today and in the future — live longer, healthier lives, supported by systems that prioritize prevention, well being, and resilience.'
3 Kennedy has taken issue with various ingredients, saying that products such as seed oil and FD&C color additives are harmful to humans.
NurPhoto via Getty Images
Kennedy has taken issue with various ingredients, saying that products such as seed oil and FD&C color additives are harmful to humans.
Kennedy has specifically been working to cut out the color additives from the U.S. food supply, saying the 'poisonous compounds offer no nutritional benefit and pose real, measurable dangers to our children's health and development.'
Every morning, the NY POSTcast offers a deep dive into the headlines with the Post's signature mix of politics, business, pop culture, true crime and everything in between. Subscribe here!
Kennedy and the FDA announced a series of new measures in April to phase out all petroleum-based synthetic dyes from the nation's food supply. Kennedy noted that this effort would need voluntary support from food manufacturers, but that the 'industry has voluntarily agreed' to do so.
Two major food giants, General Mills and Kraft Heinz, pledged this week to remove FD&C artificial dyes from their respective portfolio of products within the next two years.
McCormick told analysts during its earnings call in March that it has been working with restaurants and foodmakers to reformulate products to remove certain ingredients like food dyes.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Axios
28 minutes ago
- Axios
Trump plans to announce TikTok buyer in two weeks
President Trump said Sunday there is a buyer for TikTok, a week after he extended the app's ban deadline for a third time. The big picture: Trump would not say who the buyer is while appearing on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures," noting only it is "a group of wealthy people." When pressed by host Maria Bartiromo on who the buyer is, the president said he "will tell you in about two weeks." Zoom out: The popular social media app has been in limbo for months, repeatedly coming up against a deadline to ban it from U.S.-based app stores, only for Trump — who has his own TikTok account — to extend the ban for months at a time. The first extension came on the first day of his second term, followed by another in April when the White House thought a deal to place the app under American ownership was imminent. Instead, China balked at the deal and forced Trump to issue a second extension of the ban. The third extension — enacted on June 19 — was in yet another effort to push a potential deal over the finish line, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told the media at a press briefing that day. Between the lines: Trump offered no details Sunday as to what the deal entails or how quickly it would be completed. "I think I'll probably need China [sic] approval," he said. "I think President Xi [Jinping] will probably do it." Flashback: TikTok has been the subject of scrutiny from Congress — and even Trump, during his first presidential term — owing to concerns that its Chinese owner, ByteDance, has access to the personal data of the millions of Americans who use the app.
Forbes
28 minutes ago
- Forbes
Are Country-To-Country Deals The Future Of Climate Finance?
This aerial view shows a degraded area of the Amazon rainforest, near the Koatinemo indigenous land, ... More in Para state, Brazil, on June 12, 2025. (Photo by Carlos FABAL / AFP) (Photo by CARLOS FABAL/AFP via Getty Images) The path to COP30 in Brazil has begun with preparatory talks in Bonn, Germany, where climate finance remains the central issue. Negotiators are working to find financing mechanisms that will help developing nations adapt to climate change and transition to cleaner energy sources. To draw new monies, climate discussions must evolve—from offsetting emissions elsewhere to reducing carbon pollution at its source. The U.S.'s absence from these mid-year talks might hint at how tough the road ahead will be. At COP29 in Baku, wealthy nations pledged to provide vulnerable countries with $300 billion annually to help them recover from climate-related damage. But they haven't even met their $100 billion yearly goal at COP21. And the Trump Administration, which withdrew from the talks altogether, has already made it clear that it has no intention of honoring those commitments. In a conversation, Rachel Rose Jackson of Corporate Accountability didn't mince words: 'The Global North has absolutely no intention of delivering this debt. There is little evidence that carbon markets have led to proven and lasting emissions reductions. They are a dangerous distraction from real solutions. Corporations must be legally required to reduce emissions at source—they can't self-regulate their way to climate responsibility.' The need for money is staggering. The UNFCCC concludes that developing countries must raise $6 trillion by 2030 to fulfill their promises under the Paris Agreement. Yet many wealthy nations continue to lean on a patchwork of carbon markets—tools that allow them to finance rainforest preservation while continuing to emit greenhouse gases at home. Former U.S. climate envoy John Kerry put it bluntly: 138 countries, responsible for less than 1% of annual CO2 emissions, are at the mercy of just 20 nations that account for 80% of the total. The voluntary carbon market (VCM) has long been a go-to option for the developed world—a cheaper, politically safer path than direct contributions to emerging economies. While the industry is working hard to revamp its procedures, the model faces mounting scrutiny. A review by Corporate Accountability found that 39 of 50 VCM projects lacked environmental integrity; the remainder were problematic or unverifiable. In short, buying offsets is easier and cheaper than making emissions cuts. I've served as the Coalition for Rainforest Nations editor, concentrating on sovereign carbon credits issued by countries, not private interests. Erosion Of Faith TOPSHOT - An Indian man takes a shower as water leaks from a pipeline in New Delhi on June 6, 2017. ... More - Temperatures are hovering around 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in the Indian capital, with the cooler monsoon season still weeks away. (Photo by MONEY SHARMA / AFP) (Photo by MONEY SHARMA/AFP via Getty Images) As faith has eroded, so has value. Nature-based offset prices have plummeted from $10–15 per ton just a few years ago to $3–$6 in 2024–2025. Major buyers like Nestlé, Gucci, and Shell have exited the market, citing concerns over reputational risk and questionable methodologies. The Global South feels hopeless. Will these nations ever be compensated for protecting tropical forests that absorb carbon emissions— produced mainly by the Global North? Reform efforts are underway. The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market has introduced a two-phase vetting system focused on governance and scientific rigor. The goal is to rebuild trust and distinguish high-integrity credits that could attract renewed investment. 'No one can guarantee it will be perfect,' Nat Keohane, a senior adviser to the council, told me. 'But we can help the market and build confidence.' If successful, the council believes the VCM could scale to $20 billion–$50 billion annually by 2030; carbon credit prices could be $25 to $30 a ton. Used wisely, these funds could help preserve rainforests, support green transitions, and provide new revenue streams to developing nations committed to protecting carbon sinks. Carbon credits are not a silver bullet—but they can provide near-term capital as countries and companies decarbonize. Their role is inherently transitional, especially in hard-to-abate sectors like heavy industry or cloud computing. I reported on Microsoft, which holds a majority stake in OpenAI and relies on extensive server farms. To offset those emissions, it is investing in reforestation projects in Panama. However, this gaping void presents a new opportunity for both the developed and developing worlds to devise new techniques for attracting carbon finance. A more promising approach is for the wealthier nations to engage in bilateral pacts. These country-to-country deals are carried out under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement. This provision allows nations to fund climate projects abroad and count the resulting emissions reductions toward their climate goals, provided that strict rules are followed to prevent double-counting of the same carbon credit. The Clock Is Ticking The Scarlet Macaw, Ara macao, is a large, colorful parrot found from Mexico to Brazil. This flock ... More was photographed in Costa Rica. (Photo by: Jon G. Fuller/VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) Switzerland has signed carbon credit cooperation agreements with Ghana, Peru, Thailand, Morocco, and Vietnam. Sweden is working on the entire African continent through its Energy Agency and in partnership with the UN Development Program. Specifically, it is funding a $28.2 million initiative to help Kenya meet its climate goals. 'Kenya pursues progressive environmental policies and has set ambitious climate goals, but needs financial support to accelerate its climate transition,' says Sweden's Ambassador to Kenya, Caroline Vicini, in a release. Other countries are exploring alternative paths. Ecuador, Belize, and Gabon are restructuring national debt in exchange for conservation. Norway and Germany, meanwhile, are bypassing carbon markets altogether and making direct payments for forest protection. Norway alone has pledged $1 billion to Brazil's Amazon Fund and to Indonesia, with payments tied to verifiable emissions reductions. Still, the question remains: can these new financing mechanisms scale fast enough? For poorer nations, this is not a matter of convenience but survival. Carbon markets, bilateral agreements, and direct aid offer potential pathways; however, the urgency demands that they be ratcheted up now. Panama's Minister of the Environment, Juan Carlos Navarro, told me that climate change presents the ultimate accountability dilemma: it's everyone's responsibility, which means no one is truly accountable — not even the United States, the world's second-largest CO2 polluter. The stakes could not be higher. Climate change is already reshaping our world from supercharged hurricanes to sweeping wildfires and historic floods. For the poorest nations, climate finance is not a luxury—it is a lifeline. These countries did not create the crisis. But they are counting on the rest of us to help solve it, requiring innovative tools to lure carbon finance.
USA Today
an hour ago
- USA Today
Will TikTok be banned? Trump says there's 'a group of very wealthy people' lined up to buy it
Trump said a TikTok buyer will be announced in two weeks, but the sale still needs permission from Chinese owners. President Donald Trump said his administration has identified a group of buyers for TikTok, and their names will be released in two weeks. Trump made the announcement to Maria Bartiromo in an interview on "Sunday Morning Futures" while talking about potential tariff deals. "We have a buyer for TikTok by the way," Trump said in the interview, which was released June 29. "I think I'll need probably China approval, and I think presidency will probably do it." He said the buyer is "a group of very wealthy people" without providing additional details. Ten days ago, Trump signed a 90-day extension preventing a TikTok sell-or-ban law from going into effect after it was passed by Congress. Lawmakers have said they're worried the company was using the mega-popular video platform to spy on Americans. The latest delay was the third time Trump has moved to keep the law from going into effect using an executive order. Congress approved the ban of the app if was not sold to a non-Chinese company last year, and former President Joe Biden signed it into law. The Supreme Court has since upheld the potential ban's constitutionality, but since returning to office, Trump has directed the Department of Justice not to enforce it. His executive orders have kept the app from going dark.
