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The five bold actions needed from the White House food summit

Next week, the White House will hold its first summit on hunger, nutrition and health in more than 50 years. It’s long overdue. 

The previous conference, in 1969, led to hundreds of policy changes and the launch of critical nutritional safety nets. This year’s gathering is just as urgent — and the moment demands a bold, whole-of-government response.  

The Biden administration must seize this opportunity to develop food policies that will improve health at every level, from the personal to the planetary. Education is not enough. Our diets and activity patterns are heavily influenced by economics, access and marketing — and all those factors can be shaped for the better with smart federal policies.  

Why do we need change? Look at the coexistence of food insecurity and obesity. Even before the pandemic and recent inflation, more than 38 million Americans lacked consistent access to healthy nourishment. At the same time, obesity rates have increased unrelentingly, and more than two-thirds of adults now are overweight or obese. That has contributed to a much shorter life span in the U.S. than in other countries with advanced economies. 

This matters beyond personal suffering: The costs ripple through our health care system, our labor market, our economy and even our national security — only an estimated 2 in 5 young adults are weight eligible and adequately active to serve in the U.S. military. 


On the community level, we see a crisis of equity. Communities of color and low-income neighborhoods often have little access to fresh fruits and vegetables and a surfeit of heavily processed snacks laden with salt, refined starch and sugar. Such diets drive up the risk for diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and more.  

Finally, there’s the planetary impact. The foods we grow, process and consume have major impacts on climate change, antibiotic resistance and susceptibility to pandemics. Food policies can quite literally shape the future of humankind — and right now, they’re harming it. 

The White House conference is a crucial opportunity for course correction. Here are five big policy goals: 

Too often, conferences are all talk, no action. The 1969 White House Conference on Food, Nutrition, and Health broke that paradigm, thanks to a powerful coalition of researchers, policymakers, consumer advocates and industry leaders committed to following the data toward evidence-based reforms.  

Five decades later, we need more bold action. Americans deserve food and nutrition policies that make it easier for us all to live full and healthy lives. America’s well-being depends on it. 

Frank Hu, the chair of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, co-chaired a committee analyzing the impact of the 1969 White House Conference on Food, Nutrition and Health. Walter Willett is a professor of epidemiology and nutrition, and Lilian Cheung is director of health promotion and communication in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard Chan School.