Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins ‘94 and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. toured Texas A&M AgriLife on April 29 to gain a greater understanding of how Texas A&M is working to advance agriculture as a solution to health.

Rollins’ and Kennedy’s introduction to multiple aspects of Texas A&M AgriLife showed how agriculture is uniquely positioned to meet many health challenges, and how new opportunities to work together are possible.

A woman stands and speaks at a podium in front of a greenhouse and a man stands next to her.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins ’94 has invited Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to tour Texas A&M AgriLife to gain a greater understanding of how agriculture is the solution to a healthier America. (Courtney Sacco/Texas A&M AgriLife)

“Making America Healthy Again starts with supporting America’s farmers and ranchers. In Texas, I was joined by Secretary Kennedy to do just that,” Rollins said in a U.S. Department of Agriculture announcement. “At USDA, I am negotiating with Mexico to stop the spread of invasive species like the New World screwworm, and Secretary Kennedy and I are working together to ensure that our kids and families are consuming the healthiest food produced in the USA.” 

The secretaries visited the AgriLife Automated Phenotyping Greenhouse and the Norman E. Borlaug Building, which houses the Institute for Advancing Health Through Agriculture, IHA; sections of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Department of Nutrition; and several researchers and employees of USDA Agricultural Research Service.

“It was an honor to join Secretary Rollins in her home state of Texas,” said Kennedy. “Together, HHS and USDA are taking on the chronic disease epidemic by fixing our broken food system and giving families the tools they need to eat well, stay healthy and Make America Healthy Again.”

“For nearly 150 years, agriculture has been at the heart of Texas A&M University,” said Robert L. Albritton ’71, Texas A&M University System Board of Regents chairman. “We’re as dedicated today as we were at the beginning of Texas A&M, and today we shared some of the most cutting-edge technology and integrated community health programs from Texas A&M AgriLife.”

Secretaries Rollins and Kennedy post next to representatives of Texas 4-H.
A small group of people sit side-by-side at tables in front of beet cattle.
A woman speaks to a small crowd of people.
A group of people stand and pose with a gig'em sign in an automated greenhouse.
Texas A&M AgriLife believes that agriculture is key to better health, a sustainable environment and a robust economy. The growing population will require a higher-quality food system using less water and fewer inputs by farmers and Texas A&M AgriLife is uniquely positioned to meet these challenges through precision agriculture. (Courtney Sacco and Sam Craft/Texas A&M AgriLife)

The Institute for Advancing Health Through Agriculture presented the Healthy Communities Initiative to the secretaries. This initiative is driven by the IHA in coordination with Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Texas 4-H, Texas A&M Health and Prairie View A&M University. The initiative is a clear demonstration that nutrition-based and exercise/physical activity interventions can reduce chronic diseases and their substantial costs.

“It is an honor to show Secretary Rollins and Secretary Kennedy how Texas A&M and our Aggies are bringing advancements in agriculture and health to fruition,” said John Sharp, chancellor of The Texas A&M University System. “The institute began with the Legislature’s decision to fund Healthy South Texas, which morphed into Healthy Texas, then the Institute for Advancing Health Through Agriculture. It was a great investment by the Legislature and AgriLife.”

The visit coincided with Day 100 of the Trump administration.

Three people in white lab coats stand and talk in front of a corn demonstration in a nutrition lab.
The Institute for Advancing Health Through Agriculture is the world’s first research institute to combine precision nutrition, responsive agriculture and behavioral research to reduce diet-related chronic diseases in a way that considers environmental and economic effects. (Courtney Sacco/Texas A&M AgriLife)

“I’m excited Secretary Rollins and Secretary Kennedy are seeing firsthand the Aggie commitment to grow and expand research that benefits public health and productive agriculture systems,” said Comptroller Glenn Hegar, who will take over as chancellor in July. “It is important that we all remember how agriculture can improve our lives, environments and economies.”

Texas A&M AgriLife believes agriculture is key to better health, a sustainable environment and a robust economy, said Jeffrey W. Savell, Ph.D., vice chancellor and dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

“Texas A&M AgriLife stands with the entire agricultural value chain, so we’re proud to be showing Secretaries Rollins and Kennedy how complex and important this system is,” Savell said. “It takes careful research and many dedicated people to translate that research into action. This isn’t just farm to table, it starts at the basic science level and goes beyond the plate, to the person.”

Also during the visit, Rollins visited the Texas A&M Beef Center to provide an update on the status of the New World screwworm. Over the weekend, Rollins sent a letter to her counterpart in Mexico demanding Mexico eliminate impediments on aircraft operations and landings that are critically impairing the U.S. response to combat the ongoing spread of the New World screwworm across Mexico, thereby preventing it from entering the United States.

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