The Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has endeavored to radically improve American nutrition and address those elements of the food system that are contributing to the chronic disease epidemic.

The department has, for instance, flipped the “corrupt food pyramid,” worked to remove petroleum-based synthetic dyes from America’s food supply, raised awareness about the health risks of eating ultra-processed foods, and expanded research into nutrition and metabolic health.

On Wednesday, Kennedy announced a new Make America Healthy Again initiative aimed at curbing chronic disease and improving nutrition: teaching Americans to cook.

‘Eating together as a family is a sacred ritual.’

Kennedy joined Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and USDA national nutrition adviser Dr. Ben Carson in announcing the commencement of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans Strategic Partnerships, which the USDA characterized as an effort to encourage “the private sector to participate in educating the American people about the importance of the Guidelines and how they serve as the foundation to better eating.”

During the press conference Wednesday, Kennedy noted, “Every American can feed themselves cheaper than fast food.”

A YouGov survey taken last month found that 36% of Americans said they cook food daily; 40% said they cook a few times a week; 10% said they cook once a week; and 2% said they never cook.

A study published last year in the journal Current Developments in Nutrition noted:

Poor dietary quality, including high intakes of ultraprocessed food and food-away-from-home, is associated with an array of adverse health outcomes, including increased BMI, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Home food preparation, “cooking,” offers an affordable strategy for reducing ultraprocessed food intake and away-from-home intake.

The same study said that “the percentage of United States adults cooking has increased since 2003; however, the overall mean time spent cooking among cookers has remained relatively stable.”

RELATED: Cooking is easy; it’s our modern anxiety that makes it hard

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“One of the challenges that we’re facing and that we’re working on all kinds of innovative devices to solve is that Americans have forgotten how to cook,” said Kennedy. “The convenience of fast food is one of the things that attracts them, and many of them don’t have the cutlery, they don’t have the pots and pans, they don’t have the cutting boards, and they don’t know how to shop.”

The health secretary said that he and his team have been discussing possibly deploying the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service and/or other organizations within HHS “to go out and actually teach people to cook.”

Kennedy underscored that making and eating meals together is about far more than just bodily health.

“President Trump has talked about the spiritual malaise in our country. That spiritual malaise comes from the breakdown of families; it comes from the fragmentation, the atomization, the isolation — particularly in our children. They don’t feel connections any more,” said Kennedy.

“Cooking … and eating together as a family is a sacred ritual,” continued Kennedy, “and it’s something that brings families together for an hour or two hours a day, where they talk, where they interact, where they work together on an act of creation, and they eat together in this wonderful ritual that brings families together.

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Kentucky is on track to become the first state where the legislature overrides a governor’s opposition and opts into President Trump’s new school-choice program, part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The federal initiative lets states opt in to tax-credit scholarships that expand options for families without tapping public school budgets.

The Kentucky Senate just passed House Bill 1 by a 33-5 vote. All Republicans backed it, joined by one Democrat. The House had already approved the bill 79-17, with two Democrats voting yes. Now it heads to Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear, a reliable opponent of school choice.

Governors don’t get a permanent veto over school choice when legislatures have the votes — and families are demanding options.

Kentucky’s override rules make this fight different. Lawmakers need only a simple majority in each chamber to overturn a veto — and the vote totals suggest they have it.

Beshear’s own education choices underscore the disconnect. He attended Capital Day School, a private school, for part of his education. He also enrolled his children in private schools for portions of their schooling. He wants those options for his family, but he resists expanding similar opportunities statewide.

North Carolina provides the contrast. Republicans there advanced an opt-in bill to Democratic Gov. Josh Stein, but the state requires a 60% vote in each chamber to override a veto. The GOP lacks that margin, making success unlikely.

In Kentucky’s Senate debate, Majority Floor Leader Max Wise (R) singled out Democratic Rep. Tina Bojanowski for her yes vote. Another senator pointed to Colorado Gov. Jared Polis — the first Democratic governor to opt his state into Trump’s program. Polis called participation a “no-brainer” and said he “would be crazy not to” do it.

Here’s the key design feature: Any U.S. taxpayer can contribute to these scholarships and claim a dollar-for-dollar federal tax credit. Families can access scholarships only if their state opts in. That means residents of opt-out states can fund scholarships in opt-in states — a built-in incentive for governors and lawmakers to join rather than watch their taxpayers’ dollars flow elsewhere.

The program relies on private contributions. It does not divert funds from public schools. That approach likely explains the bill’s wide support — more than 80% of members present and voting in each chamber backed it. Kentucky’s 2024 school choice constitutional amendment never came close to that kind of consensus.

For Kentucky families, the opt-in may be the only viable path right now. The Kentucky Supreme Court unanimously struck down the state’s tax-credit scholarship program in 2022. It also blocked charter schools last month. Unless and until the court’s composition changes, the Trump program offers a practical workaround.

RELATED: When parents pay twice to escape public schools, the verdict is in

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That matters because the 2024 ballot measure tried to amend the state constitution to sidestep the court. Teachers’ unions spent millions opposing it. The language confused voters, and constitutional amendments don’t deliver immediate, tangible benefits like scholarships. When ballot measures confuse people, they default to the status quo.

So far, 27 governors have opted their states into Trump’s school-choice program. That group includes 26 Republicans — all except Vermont Gov. Phil Scott — and one Democrat, Polis. Republican-led legislatures in other states are exploring opt-ins and, in some cases, overrides against Democratic governors.

In Arizona, the state senate passed an opt-in bill, but Republicans likely lack the votes to override a veto from Gov. Katie Hobbs. Kansas and Wisconsin are also in play. Wisconsin Republicans don’t have the votes for an override. In Kansas, it remains unclear whether Republicans will unify the way Kentucky’s did.

Kentucky’s move shows why this program has momentum. It expands options without reopening state-funding fights or running into the same court barriers. The tax-credit mechanism encourages private giving while keeping scholarship access tied to states that opt in.

If Kentucky lawmakers follow through, they won’t just deliver scholarships. They’ll set a precedent: Governors don’t get a permanent veto over school choice when legislatures have the votes — and families are demanding options.

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