Restaurant giant McDonald's Corporation MCD could be in the sights of future Department of Health and Human Services nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr., adding to the company's recent struggles that include an E. Coli outbreak.
What Happened: President-elect Donald Trump recently announced that he would be nominate Kennedy to head the Department of Health and Human Services.
The news of RFK Jr.'s potential new role sent vaccine stocks lower given the former presidential candidate's anti-vax stance over the years. Food and beverage companies could also be on watch with Kennedy saying he would target food additives.
A recent podcast interview featuring Kennedy on "The Joe Polish Show" could put McDonald's and some of Trump's favorite foods at risk, as reported by the New York Post.
"The stuff he eats is really, like, bad," Kennedy told Polish in a recent episode, while speaking of Trump's diet.
Kennedy described some of the food served aboard Trump's Trump Force One plane as “just poison.”
The comments came after an image of Trump, Kennedy, Elon Musk, and others eating McDonald's on Trump's plane went viral on social media.
Some on social media speculated about Kennedy’s expression, describing it as one of surprise or discomfort. The recent comments from Kennedy could illustrate why he looked like he did with a McDonald’s meal sitting in front of him on the plane.
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What's Next: Kennedy says he wants to "Make America Healthy Again" and is is looking to change the fast food sector. The potential future cabinet member has stopped short of calling for a ban on fast food but wants to change the way food is made.
McDonald's fans, including Trump, can breathe a sigh of relief that Kennedy recognizes fast food as "part of American culture," but they might not like potential changes.
Kennedy wants to ban seed oils, including canola, soybean, and hydrogenated soybean oil, which are used to cook McDonald's famous French fries.
Instead of using seed oils, Kennedy said McDonald's should return to cooking fries in beef fat tallow, something it once did. The cooking method is used by some gourmet burger restaurants and often results in the fries having a "darker color and a meatier taste," according to the NY Post report.
"You body needs that, it makes you healthy," Kennedy previously said of the beef fat tallow cooking method.
Kennedy could also target food dyes, which could include taking on Diet Coke, the popular beverage owned by The Coca-Cola Company KO. Trump is a known fan of Diet Coke.
"We have the worst health outcomes because of chronic disease, and we've got to figure out what's causing it and eliminate it. It's not rocket science," Kennedy told Dr. Phil McGraw in August. "We're mass poisoning an entire generation of kids. These kids are obese, it's not because they suddenly got lazy."
Trump once told employees at a McDonald's restaurant that he might know the menu better than they do. The president-elect, a well-known admirer of the cuisine, reportedly often asks White House staff to recreate dishes inspired by the restaurant.
Trump also famously served fast food to NCAA College Football champions visiting the White House when government employees were part of a government shutdown.
While Trump and Kennedy are now linked after previously running against each other in the 2024 presidential election, the removal or change in the recipe of some of Trump's favorite foods and beverages could be a storyline to watch.
MCD Price Action: McDonald's stock trades at $291.50 Monday, versus a 52-week trading range of $243.53 to $317.90. McDonald's stock is down 1.6% year-to-date in 2024 and down 7.7% over the last month.
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