By

Scottie Andrew

Feb 26, 2026

US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. appears at the inaugural Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) summit in Washington, DC on November 12. Nathan Howard/Reuters

The day after Robert F. Kennedy Jr., was sworn in as secretary of Health and Human Services on a self-described mission to “Make America Healthy Again,” the vegan podcast host and animal rights activist Bob Linden posted a missive in several vegan Facebook groups, declaring it a “beginning” and an “opportunity.”

“as Vegans, we need to make sure that we have a place at the table to Make America Healthy ‘Again’(?)” he wrote in February 2025.

Fellow vegans in the comments were incredulous — what of the bear cub carcass Kennedy claimed to have dumped in Central Park or his lifelong interest in hunting? But Linden saw in Kennedy a potential vegan ally who, despite his carnivorous diet, promised to advocate against vaccine mandates, end animal testing and encourage Americans to quit processed foods.

A year later, Kennedy has made “real food” a pillar of his Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) framework. But his new nutrition guidelines and inverted food pyramid place a much stronger emphasis on red meat, whole milk and other animal products than previous government-issued nutritional suggestions.

“I feel like it’s a betrayal,” Linden said in January. “I believe these new dietary restrictions are anti-American.”

Linden said he defines the MAHA acronym differently now: “Meatheads are hijacking America.”

A plate of birthday steak

Kennedy has never represented himself as a vegan — his infamous brain worm was likely a pork tapeworm larva — but his emphasis on whole, natural foods and his hostility to vaccines, which some vegans view as the epitome of animal-tested medicine, suggested an opportunity to bend policy in a more animal-rights-friendly direction. The former Democrat, prominent vegan and vaccine opponent Alicia Silverstone, for instance, threw her support behind Kennedy’s failed presidential campaign.

“I’ve always been on board with the ‘real food’ movement,” said Brian Turner, a vegan bodybuilder and trainer. “When RFK Jr. started focusing on cutting out ultra-processed junk, dyes and added sugars, I thought it was a great step forward, and it’s something most of the vegan community and the MAHA movement can actually agree on.”

But with the MAHA tent reserving a prominent space for beef and dairy farmers and carnivorous conservatives, the vegans who hoped he’d give them a voice are being squeezed out.

A United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) choice sign next to Angus beef and meat for sale at a grocery store on December 30. Al Drago/Getty Images

Kennedy’s status as perhaps the highest-profile vaccine opponent in office was exciting to Linden, who said he’s “anti-vax.” Most vaccines are tested on animals before they progress to human trials and can contain “animal-derived products”; therefore, he said, “vaccines aren’t vegan.” They are, though, safe and effective at protecting against harmful and preventable illnesses.

Along with undermining his department’s support for vaccination and criticizing the processed food industry, however, Kennedy has spent his time as health secretary speaking incessantly about his prolific consumption of red meat. Earlier this year, he said switching to a “carnivore diet” and eating beef around twice a day helped him achieve “mental clarity” and shed 20 pounds. His wife, Cheryl Hines, said he cooks a steak with sauerkraut, his other main food, at 6:30 a.m. (Hines has said she’s a vegetarian.) For his birthday in January, he posed with a greasy, bone-in steak stuffed with three lit candles.

Kennedy’s taste for meat goes beyond personal preference and into the policy realm. This month, appearing at the beef industry convention CattleCon, Kennedy urged cattle farmers to “increase the size of the herd to ramp up beef production.” He’s attacked seed oils and vowed to end a purported “war on protein.” He’s touted beef tallow, a lard derived from cow and sheep fat that’s higher in saturated fats than seed oils, as the “MAHA way” to fry food.

The message delivered from the top of the government’s health apparatus is that plant-based diets are feeble and inadequate. “I’ve never needed a ‘war on protein’ to get results,” the bodybuilder Turner said.

Kennedy’s choice to center animal products in American nutrition guidelines may mirror his own diet, but the changes were no doubt politically motivated, said Laura Wright, a professor of English at Western Carolina University who studies veganism.

“Given this current administration and its focus on sort of hypermasculinity and lack of empathy for any being, whether human or non-human, that doesn’t fit a specific kind of ideological mold, this isn’t surprising,” Wright said.

Red meat has long been associated with virility, masculinity and the national identity of America, Wright said.

“To some, not eating red meat — the intentional not eating red meat — is seen as un-American,” said Samantha Mosier, an associate professor of political science at East Carolina University.

Kennedy’s MAHA coalition was assembled from a large and disparate collection of interest groups and some of its tenets contradict each other — like emphasizing unprocessed foods to reduce the amount of saturated fat in the American diet while encouraging increased consumption of red meat and whole milk, both of which are higher in saturated fat than vegan alternatives. Splintering was inevitable, Mosier said.

“It’s often seen, when you build coalitions in which you have multiple factors — Make America Healthy Again is combining things related to diet, and they’re relating things to the environment,” Mosier said. “If you are a vegan and you are part of that movement, there’s a chance that the entire movement may not represent your collective values.”

Meat: the political moment

Vegans wanted Kennedy to radically reimagine the American diet, even if they didn’t expect him to convert millions to their cause. They’ve never had an advocate in high office before.

“I don’t think vegans fit into any administration,” said Gary Yourofsky, another vegan and animal rights activist whose combative messaging includes describing the slaughter of animals for food as rape, slavery and a holocaust. “Nobody truly understands veganism. Everybody eats meat, cheese, milk and eggs.”

Kennedy has followed through on some of his pledges to supporters of animal rights. Late last year, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientists were told to end research on macaque monkeys, who’d been primarily used to study HIV prevention. Science reported that the order came from Kennedy.

“I’ve never seen anything do something so amazing on behalf of animals,” Yourofsky said.

But encouraging Americans to eat more meat is a policy ethics-focused vegans say they cannot abide. Most Americans never followed USDA’s MyPlate suggestions or the food pyramid to a T anyway, Mosier said, so it’s not clear whether the new inverted pyramid will directly influence anyone to ditch tofu for steak or oat milk for a glass of the full-fat dairy original.

Veganism was never popular — only 1% of Americans identified as vegan in a 2023 Gallup poll — but it’s no longer on trend. Sales of plant-based meat alternatives, which surged during the Covid-19 pandemic, are declining. Consumption of dairy milk continues to rise. Formerly vegan restaurants are adding meat to their menus.

“I feel that veganism is a threat,” Wright said. “I’ve always felt that it’s so non-normative, and it’s so in many ways kind of anti-establishment, that the fact that it’s sort of been disappeared doesn’t surprise me.”

Given veganism’s minority position in the culture and in politics, Yourofsky said he can’t be particularly fazed by the meat-heavy adjustments to national nutrition guidelines.

“I didn’t find that to be offensive,” he said of the changes. “I found it to be stupid.”

February 26, 2026

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The 2026-27 Ohio hunting and trapping season dates that begin this fall were proposed to the Ohio Wildlife Council on Wednesday, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. White-tailed deer, waterfowl, and small game hunting seasons were included in the proposals.

A complete list of proposed rule changes for 2026-27 hunting and trapping seasons will be available at wildohio.gov on Monday, March 2. Comments for Division of Wildlife proposals are accepted online at wildohio.gov from Monday, March 2 to Wednesday, April 1. A statewide hearing on all proposed rules will be held on Wednesday, April 8. If approved, the proposed rules take effect on Tuesday, June 30, 2026.
 
Deer hunting proposals
The proposed deer hunting seasons are similar to last year. As in years past, only one antlered deer may be harvested, regardless of where or how it is taken. Hunting hours are 30 minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset. The proposed statewide deer hunting dates for 2026-27 include:

• Deer archery: Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, to Sunday, Feb. 7, 2027
• Youth deer gun: Saturday, Nov. 21, 2026, and Sunday, Nov. 22, 2026 
• Deer gun: Monday, Nov. 30, 2026 to Sunday, Dec. 6, 2026; Saturday, Dec. 19, 2026, and Sunday, Dec. 20, 2026 
• Deer muzzleloader: Saturday, Jan. 2, 2027, to Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2027 

The deer proposals included expanding the use of deer management permits throughout the season. Deer management permits can only be used to take antlerless deer.
 
Bag limits were proposed to increase to three deer in Defiance, Paulding, and Warren counties. The bag limit in Athens, Meigs, and Washington counties, areas affected by an unprecedented outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease in 2025, was proposed to be two deer, no more than one of which may be an antlerless deer. The Wildlife Council also received a proposal for the season bag limit in the CWD surveillance area to be six deer.
 
Wednesday’s proposals also entailed expanding the Chronic Wasting Disease surveillance area to include all of Allen County, Van Buren Township in Hancock County, and Holmes Township in Crawford County.
 
Hunters in the disease surveillance area will have additional opportunities to harvest deer, if approved:

• Early deer archery: Saturday, Sept. 12, 2026, to Sunday, Feb. 7, 2027 
• Early deer gun: Saturday, Oct. 10 to Monday, Oct. 12, 2026 

Additional hunting proposals 
The Ohio Wildlife Council received proposals for waterfowl, small game, migratory bird, and fall wild turkey hunting seasons. Most proposed season dates are similar to previous years.
 
Ruffed grouse hunting is proposed to be limited to controlled hunting only on four designated areas. Hunters may apply for those limited permits in July. Wild turkey hunting during the fall season is proposed to be limited to hunting only with shotguns using shotshells. No fall turkey hunting with archery equipment will be allowed.
 
Waterfowl hunting seasons will be split into three zones with new boundaries that were approved in 2025. Find the full list of proposed hunting season dates at wildohio.gov. 
 
Endangered and threatened species
Additional proposals at Wednesday’s meeting outlined potential changes to Ohio’s threatened and endangered species list as part of a comprehensive five-year review.
 
The American barn owl was proposed to be downlisted from threatened to a species of concern after genetic testing revealed the species likely has a larger contiguous Midwest population. The blackchin shiner was also proposed to be downlisted from extirpated to endangered following its re-establishment in specific Ohio lakes.
 
Further changes include the proposed addition of 17 bees and 16 aquatic invertebrates that were previously unlisted to the state’s threatened and endangered list following comprehensive surveys. Find the complete list of proposed species changes at wildohio.gov.

Ohio Wildlife Council 
The Ohio Wildlife Council is an eight-member board that approves all Division of Wildlife proposed rules and regulations. Council meetings are open to the public. Individuals interested in providing comments are asked to call 614-265-6304 at least two days prior to the meeting to register. All comments are required to be three minutes or less.

The mission of the Division of Wildlife is to conserve and improve fish and wildlife resources and their habitats for sustainable use and appreciation by all. Visit wildohio.gov to find out more.

ODNR ensures a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all. Visit the ODNR website at ohiodnr.gov.

Editor’s Note: 2026-2027 Proposed Hunting Seasons Chart
2026-2027 Deer Hunting Regulations

The county executive, who vetoed a similar measure five years ago, has not changed his position.

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• https://ohiodnr.gov/discover-and-learn/safety-conservation/about-ODNR/news/ohios-2026-27-hunting-and-trapping-seasons-proposed-to-wildlife-council

Author: Dave McKinley

Published: 9:24 PM EST February 26, 2026

Updated: 9:24 PM EST February 26, 2026

BUFFALO, N.Y. — A member of the Erie County Legislature is proposing a local law that would allow hunters as young as 12 years old to take deer with a firearm while under adult supervision.

It is similar to a measure passed by lawmakers five years ago which was ultimately vetoed by County Executive Mark Poloncarz.

According to a spokesperson for Poloncarz, the County Executive has not changed his position.

Young hunters

In 2021, New York State state passed a new section of the environmental conservation law allowing 12 and 13 year old’s to hunt deer with firearms under adult supervision under a pilot program

But counties had to pass a local law to opt in.

Five years later, Erie County remains one of just two across the state where deer hunting with guns is permitted that has not passed such a law.

“Unfortunately, at the present time, I have to take my son, to another neighboring county to participate in this program,” said Legislator Frank Todaro (R-8th District), who is sponsoring the local law which was sent to committee on Thursday.

Tried before

When a similar measure came before the County Legislature in 2021 it passed with bipartisan support but with not enough support to override the veto of Poloncarz, who in his veto message said:

“Neither myself or any future County Executive should ever have to read a child fatality report regarding the accidental death of 12 or 13 year old child because this law went into effect under my signature.”

Poloncarz further claimed there were “many unfortunate firearm hunting accidents across the county and state, especially those involving youth hunters.” Even though the data at the time indicted there was no basis for that claim.

Todaro said he decided to re-introduce the measure again after a report released by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) earlier this month.

Report indicates no problems

The report revealed that since the pilot program began in 2021 there have been no hunting related accidents involving 12 and 13 year old’s, nor even a single violation or license revocation involving hunters of that age.

That’s out of more than 63,000 licenses granted to 12 and 13 year old’s which generated approximately $1.3 million in funding for the state’s environmental conservation efforts. 

“The proof is in the numbers,” said Todaro. “So I figured this would be an opportunity to reintroduce it, and hopefully we can not receive a veto from the County Executive.”

With the Poloncarz spokesman indicating that the County Executive hasn’t changed his position, however, it’s an indication that another veto could come even if if lawmakers pass the bill again.

Although, the County Executive’s opposition may someday become moot as the DEC report also recommends that the pilot program be made permanent under state law and that the requirement for counties to pass a local law to opt into it be removed.