Tuesday, March 3, 2026

• 8:45am

  Welcome

  Speakers

  Susan Weinstock
  Consumer Federation of America

  Thomas Gremillion
  Consumer Federation of America

• 9:00am

  Plenary session: The MAHA Mid-Terms

  Approximately 1 in 20 voters who backed President Trump for the first time in November 2024 said they did so because he vowed to “make America healthy again.” Thus far, the Administration’s policies have had wide ranging impacts on food product reformulation, food assistance programs, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and tariffs on foods and food ingredients. Political strategists on both sides of the aisle are looking to MAHA voters to boost their candidates’ prospects in the 2026 midterm elections. How will recent policy changes affect the food system and how will electoral politics in turn influence MAHA food policy priorities?

  Moderator

  Philip Wegmann
  Real Clear Politics

  Panelists

  Joy Dubost
  NJOY Health and Nutrition, LLC

  Peter Lurie
  Center for Science in the Public Interest

  Charlie Misseijer
  Moms for Liberty

• 9:50am

  Plenary Session: Food Federalism

  The Trump Administration has applauded state laws that introduce new labeling requirements for, or outright ban, foods with ingredients like synthetic dyes. However, it has also sued California to block the state’s cage-free egg and animal welfare law. At the same time, Congress has debated legislation to create federal standards and preempt state regulation of food expiration date labeling, pet food, pesticides, food additives, and more. How should state and federal food policy interact? When is federal preemption justified, and when should states act as “laboratories of democracy” on food policy?

  Moderator

  Jared Rothstein
  POLITICO’s AgencyIQ

  Panelists

  Ricardo Carvajal
  Hyman, Phelps & McNamara, PC

  Scott Faber
  Environmental Working Group

  Sarah Gallo
  Consumer Brands Association

  Emily Broad Lieb
  Harvard Law School

• 10:40am

  Networking Break

• 11:00am

  Concurrent Session 1:

  Pest Pressure, Pesticides, and Consumer Protection

  U.S. farmers spend an estimated $16.5 billion on pesticides, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which has recently eased restrictions on the chemicals’ use. But concerns about longstanding policies governing pesticide application have been growing across the political spectrum. What is the proper role of pesticides in agriculture? Where is there consensus for reform? What are the risks facing consumers and farmworkers?

  Moderator

  Gregory Jaffe
  Jaffe Policy Consulting

  Panelists

  Michal Freedhoff
  Holland & Knight LLP

  Kimberly Nesci
  Kimberly Nesci Consulting, LLC

  Melissa Perry
  George Mason University

  Kelly Ryerson
  American Regeneration

• Concurrent Session 2:

  Unpacking the Dietary Guidelines for Americans

  Since their initial publication in 1980, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans have remained relatively consistent. How does the latest iteration of the DGAs fit into that context? This panel discussion will examine how the new DGAs deviate from past guidelines, as well as recent Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee recommendations, with respect to advice on ultra-processed foods, saturated fat, alcohol, and other areas, and what these changes say about the future of official dietary guidelines in the U.S.

  Moderator

  Maya Maroto
  The Coalition for Metabolic Health

  Panelists

  Tom Brenna
  University of Texas at Austin

  Kelly Horton
  Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

  David S. Ludwig
  Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School

  Peter Lurie
  Center for Science in the Public Interest

• Concurrent Session 3:

  Food and Faith

  Faith-based organizations have long played an outsized role in U.S. food assistance, with many working to influence public policy through advocacy and education. What is the appropriate role of faith-based organizations in food policy? How are faith-based organizations responding to changes in the federal food policy landscape? How does the work of faith-based food assistance organizations relate to the larger role of religious movements in politics that have called for reducing government food assistance?

  Moderator

  Steve Messeh
  USDA Center for Faith

  Panelists

  Liza Lieberman
  MAZON

  Jessica Moerman
  Evangelical Environmental Network

  Bob Pezzolesi
  Interfaith Public Health Network

  Alessandro Terenzoni
  Americans United for Separation of Church and State

• 12:15pm

  Lunch / Keynote

  Speaker

  Rep. Natalie Mihalek
  Pennsylvania House of Representatives

• 1:30pm

  Concurrent Session 1:

  Food Inflation Strikes Back

  After soaring pandemic era inflation, food prices seemed to stabilize, only to begin creeping upward again during the first months of the second Trump Administration. What are the most important factors driving food inflation? How are consumers and industry adjusting to higher prices? How much does food inflation undermine progress towards improving American diets and reducing diet-related disease?

  Moderator

  Nancy Glick
  National Consumers League

  Panelists

  Phillip Connor – View Slides
  Center for Migration and Development, Princeton University

  John Iselin – View Slides
  Yale Budget Lab

  David L. Ortega
  Michigan State University

• Concurrent Session 2:

  Feed the World?

  Nearly a year after the dismantling of USAID, the largest ever restructuring of U.S. foreign aid programs has triggered a cascade of foreign policy and humanitarian responses. What lessons can be gleaned so far? Why have many other industrialized countries similarly reduced foreign aid commitments? How have these changes affected hunger across the globe? How will foreign aid cuts affect the U.S. agriculture industry?

  Moderator

  Holly Freishtat
  The Milken Institute

  Panelists

  Eric Mitchell
  Alliance to End Hunger

  Anna Nelson
  Food Security Leadership Council

  Sakeenah Shabazz
  Bread for the World

• Concurrent Session 3:

  Losing Sight of Foodborne Illness Risk

  As concerns about food chemical safety risks surge, federal funding cuts have raised concerns about the health systems responsible for detecting foodborne illness outbreaks. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, federal funding, mostly through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, accounted for an estimated 55% of local health department budgets. With cuts at CDC exacerbating pressures to cut back on foodborne illness disease surveillance, how are state and local policymakers responding? Do recent policy changes track consumer perceptions of risk related to chemical and microbiological food safety?

  Moderator

  Barbara Kowalcyk
  The George Washington University

  Panelists

  William K. Hallman
  Rutgers University

  Stephen M. Ostroff
  Former Deputy Commissioner for Foods and Veterinary Medicine, Food and Drug Administration

  Sarah Sorscher
  Center for Science in the Public Interest

• 2:45pm

  Networking Break

• 3:00pm

  Food Policy Ideas Salon

• 4:00pm

  Plenary Session: Food Assistance in Transition

  For the first time ever, federal food assistance benefits were cut off to millions of Americans during the federal government shutdown in Fall of 2025. Funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program has since been restored, but the One Big Beautiful Bill Act expands work requirements and makes other reforms that will eliminate or significantly reduce SNAP for approximately four million beneficiaries. As states implement these reforms, what is the impact? How are consumers, industry, and state and local policymakers adapting?

  Moderator

  Sara Bleich
  Harvard University

  Panelists

  Randy Alison Aussenberg
  Congressional Research Service

  Radha Muthiah
  Capital Area Food Bank

  Angela Rachidi
  American Enterprise Institute

Wednesday, March 4, 2026

• 8:00am

  Welcome

  Speaker

  Thomas Gremillion
  Consumer Federation of America

• 8:05am

  Keynote Address

  Speaker

  The Honorable Ron Johnson
  U.S. Senate

• 8:30am

  Fireside Chat with FDA Commissioner Makary

• Speakers

  Martin A Makary
  27th Commissioner of Food and Drugs

  Helena Bottemiller Evich
  Food Fix

• 9:15am

  Concurrent Session 1:

  Shining a Light on GRAS

  As the U.S. Food and Drug Administration works to update the rules for “Generally Recognized as Safe” food substances, these ubiquitous ingredients continue to command popular attention. FDA is poised to require mandatory submission of GRAS notices for qualifying ingredients. Will more transparency adequately address concerns about the “GRAS loophole”? How should FDA respond when new evidence of harm caused by a GRAS substance emerges?

  Moderator

  Wendy Reinhardt Kapsak
  International Food Information Council

  Panelists

  Katya Cronin
  The George Washington University Law School

  Melissa Halas
  The Non-UPF Program

  Rep. Natalie Mihalek
  Pennsylvania House of Representatives

  Stuart Pape
  Polsinelli

• Concurrent Session 2:

  Coping with Climate Change, and Policy Change

  Under the second Trump administration, many federal programs aimed at helping farmers and ranchers mitigate climate change, or adopt conservation-oriented agriculture, have been paused or eliminated. In other cases, federal agencies have preserved funding streams but introduced new criteria for grantees. How are food producers adjusting to the shifting policy landscape? How will these changes affect the food system?

  Moderator

  Karim D. Marshall
  Consumer Federation of America

  Panelists

  Sanah Baig
  Plant Based Foods Institute

  Michael Carter Jr.
  Carter Farms and Africulture

  W. Scott Marlow
  Long Rows Consulting and former USDA Farm Service Agency

  Richa Patel
  National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition

• Concurrent Session 3:

  The Future of Nutrition Research

  As diet-related diseases have ravaged public health, support for research into how nutrition affects health and wellness has grown across the political spectrum. But nutrition research continues to face significant challenges—from inadequate funding and infrastructure to inherent complexities in studying food and diet. This panel explores opportunities for a new, coordinated approach, and what it will take to produce actionable evidence for policymakers and the food industry, rebuild public trust, and make meaningful progress against obesity and chronic disease.

  Moderator

  Catherine Woteki
  University of Virginia

  Panelists

  Andrew Bremer
  Office of Nutrition Research, National Institutes of Health

  Kellie Casavale
  Agriculture, Food, and Nutrition Evidence Center

  Mduduzi Mbuya
  Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition

• 10:30 am

  Networking Break

• 10:45am

  Plenary session: The Latest Consumer Trends

  How is media attention on ultra-processed foods and food additives affecting what consumers buy, company product portfolios, and marketing strategies? What patterns are emerging among Millenial and Gen Z consumers’ eating and food purchasing habits?  What lessons should policymakers take from the emerging food trends?

  Moderator

  Helena Bottemiller Evich
  Food Fix

  Panelists

  Tim Blankshain
  NielsenIQ

  Lisa Feldman
  Sodexo North America

  Aaliyah Nedd
  National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA CLUSA)

  View Slides

• 11:40am

  Plenary Session: Measuring Success—a Closer Look at SNAP Waivers

  USDA has granted waivers to states across the country allowing officials to exclude sugary beverages and other “unhealthy” foods from eligibility under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Benefits program. Administration leaders have celebrated these states as “laboratories of innovation” that will reduce public subsidies for junk food and show the way towards “bold solutions to long-ignored challenges.” As states adopt a variety of restrictions on SNAP eligible foods, how are policymakers evaluating the costs and benefits of these policies? What evidence should policymakers collect to measure the waivers’ efficacy in nudging consumers toward healthier diets?

  Moderator

  Jane Black
  Food Journalist

  Panelists

  Stephanie Johnson
  National Grocers Association

  Jerold Mande
  Nourish Science

  Dariush Mozaffarian
  Food is Medicine Institute, Tufts University

• 12:30pm

  Adjourn