The president of the United States signed an executive order titled "Advancing Regenerative Agriculture and Strengthening American Farm Resilience."
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins joined President Donald Trump in the Oval Office alongside four regenerative farmers.
"Making America Healthy Again begins with understanding that health starts long before someone enters a doctor's office," said HHS Secretary Kennedy. "It starts with the food we eat and the way it is produced. Today's executive order reflects President Trump's commitment to working alongside America's farmers to strengthen our food system while advancing research that will deepen our understanding of how agricultural practices, nutrition, environmental exposures, and human health are connected. America cannot Make America Healthy Again without America's farmers."
The executive order directs HHS, USDA and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to strengthen research, innovation and public-private partnerships that support regenerative agriculture. Under the order, the three agencies will develop a research and evaluation framework to improve understanding of cumulative chemical exposures in the food supply using new scientific approaches. HHS will also launch a National Institutes of Health grand prize challenge to accelerate innovative methods for evaluating, diagnosing and addressing cumulative chemical exposures, and will direct the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to prioritize research into technologies that reduce reliance on chemical crop protection tools.
The order builds on an earlier announcement by HHS, USDA and EPA of more than $1 billion in investments to modernize American agriculture and strengthen the long-term security of the food supply.
Coinciding with the announcement, HHS released a new issue brief from its Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) titled "Regenerative Agriculture and Population Health: Examining How Regenerative Agriculture Can Support Healthier Food Systems and Better Health Outcomes." The report reviews emerging evidence on potential connections between regenerative agriculture, food quality, environmental exposures and human health while highlighting opportunities for additional research. The brief concludes that regenerative agriculture represents a promising area for continued scientific evaluation.
