As Iowa agriculture looks back on 2025 and ahead to 2026, another major topic that shaped conversation this year was the Make America Healthy Again report, often referred to as MAHA. While the report addressed many issues farmers care about, just like consumers do, it also raised questions about how food is produced and the tools farmers use to protect crops and care for animals.
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig says the discussion around MAHA comes after a growing season that forced farmers to adapt quickly to unexpected challenges.
Naig points to disease pressure, including issues like Southern rust, that were not widely anticipated heading into the season. He says access to fungicides and other crop protection tools played a critical role in salvaging yields and preventing what could have been a far worse economic outcome for farmers.
While those tools were essential in a difficult year, Naig says he understands why consumers want reassurance about how they are used and why those conversations matter.
Naig emphasizes that farmers share the same health and safety concerns as consumers. Farmers live in rural communities, drink the water, raise families, and rely on the same food system as everyone else. That is why education, training, and regulation are central to how crop protection products are approved and applied.
He also notes that agriculture can support many of the broader goals included in the MAHA report, particularly those related to improving nutrition, addressing childhood health, and increasing access to wholesome foods. Naig says farmers can stand behind efforts focused on nutritious diets, real protein, and transparency in food systems.
Where he urges caution is in ensuring that decisions about crop protection and farming practices remain grounded in science and sound research. Naig says if credible evidence shows a product cannot be used safely, it should not remain on the market. At the same time, he believes it is important not to remove effective tools without a science-based justification.
As discussions around MAHA continue into 2026, Naig says farmers must be part of that conversation. Telling the story of how food is produced, why certain tools are necessary, and how they are used responsibly will be critical to maintaining trust with consumers and ensuring farmers can continue producing safe, affordable food.
