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Helena
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Mike Tyson unveils ‘processed food kills’ ad for the Super Bowl
Boxing icon Mike Tyson released a Super Bowl ad this morning with a stark message for the more than 100 million people watching the game: Processed food kills.
“We’re the most powerful country in the world,” Tyson says, while throwing an air punch at the camera. “And we have the most obese, pudgy people. Something has to be done about processed food in this country.”
The 30-second spot, which also shares Tyson’s personal health struggles, displays “Processed Food Kills” over Tyson’s face and then concludes with a call to action: “Eat Real Food” and points people to realfood.gov, the Trump administration’s website for the revamped dietary guidelines that was made by the National Design Studio, run by Airbnb co-founder and billionaire Joe Gebbia.
While it certainly looks like the ad was government funded, it was not government funded. In very small letters, the ad discloses that it was funded by “MAHA Center Inc.” an entity basically no one has heard of. Per CBS News, the ad was funded by the MAHA Center nonprofit led by Tony Lyons, who also leads MAHA Action and other political groups tied to the MAHA movement. It’s likely the project involved multiple big donors, since a 30-second Super Bowl spot like this can run as much as $10 million.
Government boost: While the Trump administration didn’t fund the ad, it’s signal boosting and endorsing the message: “Thank you for sharing your story Mike — and delivering the most important message in Super Bowl history,” wrote HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on X today. “We don’t have to be the sickest country in the developed world. The answer is simple: EAT REAL FOOD.”
White House dunk: The White House also endorsed the ad in a series of posts across social media this morning. “MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN,” the White House posted on X, re-posting the video from Mike Tyson.
Calley Means, a close Kennedy ally and White House advisor, touted the ad as part of a bigger strategy.
“The Trump admin is declaring war on obesity,” Means wrote on X. “In 24 hours: GLP-1 costs lowered 80%. Spurred a Super Bowl ad heralding the importance of Real Food.”
Tyson the vegan? One interesting side note here: Mike Tyson has for many years touted a vegan diet, which runs counter to the high-protein, meat-centered message that MAHA prefers. Tyson told Jimmy Kimmel in 2013 that going vegan and exercising more helped him lose 130 pounds. In early 2025, Tyson launched a plant-based ice cream in collaboration with a vegan fast-food restaurant in LA. (The dessert is even served with a vegan chocolate ear on top!) Tyson has more recently said he does eat some meat now.
Uncharted territory: We have never seen an ad like this at the Super Bowl, which in many ways is like the Oscars for processed food advertising. Each year, the ads are dominated by soda, chips, candy and fast food makers trying to make a splash with American consumers.
We’ve already seen ads previewed for this weekend for Lays, Ritz, Nerds, Kinder, Pringles, Raisin Bran, Michelob ULTRA, Budweiser, Bud Light, Hellman’s and Pepsi — and I’m surely missing some.
Anticipating the scramble: I haven’t yet seen much of a food industry response to this ad, likely because everyone was blindsided by it.
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What I’m reading
F.D.A. relaxes rules on ‘naturally derived’ dyes (New York Times). “Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday announced the Food and Drug Administration was relaxing its enforcement of federal food additive regulations, making it easier for manufacturers to claim that they are not using artificial dyes in their products,” reports Sheryl Gay Stolberg. “The F.D.A. has barred food makers from advertising that products contain ‘no artificial colors’ unless they have no added dyes of any kind. But Mr. Kennedy and F.D.A. officials announced that the agency would no longer enforce that rule, so long as companies were not using petroleum-based dyes. The agency also approved beetroot red, a new color option, as well as the expanded use of spirulina extract, an existing color additive derived from a type of algae. Those approvals bring to six the number of natural dyes that the agency has authorized since President Trump and Mr. Kennedy took office.”
Thompson promises farm bill vote this month (E&E News). “House Agriculture Chair Glenn Thompson pledged Wednesday to complete a five-year farm bill in committee by the end of February, as lawmakers try to bridge political divides that have stalled the legislation,” reports Marc Heller. “Thompson (R-Pa.) told state agriculture officials at a policy conference in Washington that finishing the bill — extended more than once since the 2018 farm bill expired in September 2023 — is his top priority. Final passage of a farm bill, though, will require the Senate to follow suit, and leaders there haven’t given a firm indication of timing.”
Ultra-processed foods should be treated more like cigarettes than food – study (The Guardian). “Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) have more in common with cigarettes than with fruit or vegetables, and require far tighter regulation, according to a new report. UPFs and cigarettes are engineered to encourage addiction and consumption, researchers from three US universities said, pointing to the parallels in widespread health harms that link both,” reports Kat Lay. “There are similarities in the production processes of UPFs and cigarettes, and in manufacturers’ efforts to optimise the ‘doses’ of products and how quickly they act on reward pathways in the body, according to the paper from researchers at Harvard, the University of Michigan and Duke University. The authors suggest that marketing claims on the products, such as being ‘low fat’ or ‘sugar free,’ are ‘health washing’ that can stall regulation, akin to the advertising of cigarette filters in the 1950s as protective innovations that ‘in practice offered little meaningful benefit.’”
US will test infant formula to see if botulism is wider risk (Bloomberg). “US health officials plan to test certain dairy-based ingredients used in a wide variety of baby formulas for spores that can cause infant botulism, in the wake of the ByHeart recall last year that was connected to 51 infant hospitalizations,” reports Anna Edney. “The Food and Drug Administration will test ingredients such as milk powder and whey protein concentrate to help determine whether contamination that could lead to botulism is ‘a foreseeable hazard that companies could test for,’ Kyle Diamantas, deputy commissioner for human foods at the agency, said in an interview with Bloomberg.”
Health and science professionals question scientific basis of 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (CSPI). “A letter signed by 210 researchers, doctors, and dietitians was sent to Health and Human Services Secretary Kennedy and Agriculture Secretary Rollins expressing concern about the recently released 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). The letter highlights serious scientific and procedural issues with the DGA, which risk confusing the public, undermining the scientific basis of the DGA, and harming health. The letter notes that the new DGA rejects the majority of evidence-based recommendations from the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC). The new DGA relies on a ‘Scientific Foundation’ developed with less rigor, inconsistent standards of evidence, and significant conflicts of interest. The signatories call on USDA, HHS, and professional associations to issue science-based dietary guidance that truly promotes health and prevents chronic disease and to provide clear, implementable guidance for federal nutrition programs that align with the DGA, like school meals.”
Stephen Miller is a top Trump adviser. Katie Miller has a podcast. So who’s advertising on it? (Boston Globe). “As Katie Miller, wife of top Trump adviser Stephen Miller, interviewed actress Cheryl Hines about healthy eating on her nascent podcast, she paused to read a quick aside,” Tal Kopan writes. “‘Speaking of food labels and transparency, did you know there’s a website where you can learn more about the ingredients in all of your favorite drinks?’ Miller read from her note cards. The plug was an ad paid for by the American Beverage Association, a lobbying group whose member companies make the sugary sodas that have been a top target of Hines’s husband, Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and his ‘Make America Healthy Again’ attack on unhealthy foods. With its interviews of Trump officials, celebrities, and health influencers, Miller launched her eponymous podcast last year, she said, to offer a platform for conservative and MAHA-inclined women. But in a Trump-driven Washington and changing media ecosystem, it’s also offered a prime venue for corporate and special interests looking to shape policy debates.”
Texas plant-based meat labeling law struck down by court (Food Dive). “A federal judge struck down a Texas law requiring plant-based and cultivated meat companies to carry disclaimers that their products are not real meat, saying it violated the First Amendment,” reports Laurel Deppen. “The judgment follows a years-long lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas claiming the law created an undue burden on plant-based food makers. The law, which took effect in 2023, required plant-based products to carry new labels or risk being deemed ‘misbranded.’ The labels had to include qualifiers like ‘meatless’ or ‘lab-grown’ in an equal or larger font size than the product name.”
Boar’s Head reopens Virginia deli meat plant tied to deadly listeria outbreak (AP). “The Boar’s Head deli meat plant tied to a deadly food-poisoning outbreak in 2024 is back in business, company officials said. The Jarratt, Virginia, site resumed limited operations on Monday, nearly 17 months after it was shut down following the listeria outbreak that killed 10 people and sickened dozens,” Jonel Aleccia reports. “Boar’s Head, a 120-year-old company based in Sarasota, Florida, permanently stopped making liverwurst and recalled 7 million pounds (more than 3 million kilograms) of deli products in the wake of the illnesses. But Natalie Dyenson, the company’s chief food safety officer, told The Associated Press that the facility has been completely revamped and tested to ensure no contamination remains.”
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