RFK Jr.'s not-so-secret weapon: the moms

Driving the news: The alliance was on display last week when Kennedy announced an "understanding" with food makers to cut certain dyes from their products.

• At a press conference filled with a who's who of popular online influencers, Kennedy pointed to states like West Virginia that have recently passed laws banning certain food dyes from products sold.
• "The only reason that those states have banned these products is because of these ladies and millions more across the country, the warrior moms, who have powered the MAHA movement," Kennedy said.
• "I just want to urge all of you, it's not the time to stop. It's the time to redouble your efforts."

Between the lines: Influencers such as Vani Hari, better known as the "Food Babe," can be found on platforms including Instagram, TikTok, Substack and on the podcast circuits.

• Their pet causes range from food additives and seed oils to the use of glyphosate in farming, fluoride in water and the vaccine schedule. But they've coalesced around Kennedy's suspicion of the pharmaceutical and food industries, and his contention that regulators have grown cozy with the businesses they're supposed to be policing.
• "It's made up of mothers who are fed up with the status quo, the mothers who see the ramifications and the consequences of poor diet and a health care system that isn't serving us," said Hilda Labrada Gore, a health coach and host of the Wise Traditions podcast, which has millions of downloads.
• Other influencers include nutritionist Courtney Swan, who has more than 580,000 followers on Instagram, Moms Across America founder Zen Honeycutt, host of the "Unstoppable with Zen Honeycutt" podcast, and Ana-Maria Temple, a holistic pediatrician with 366,000 Instagram followers.

Several told Axios the movement is built around small group text chains, newsletters and social media posts that amplify shared concerns. They also pointed to the mobilizing power of groups like the Weston A. Price Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to restore nutrient-dense foods to the American diet and has chapters around the country.

• These influencers have mobilized support for legislation at the local and state level and take credit for persuading food companies to take steps like updating ingredient labels.
• Hari, who has 2.3 million followers on Instagram and is a New York Times bestselling author, got dozens of protesters to travel to WK Kellogg Co. headquarters in Battle Creek, Michigan, last year to protest food dyes in the company's cereals and deliver petitions. She was among the speakers at Kennedy's food dye event.
• "I've gathered hundreds of thousands of signatures on petitions. I have a huge following. So that helps and people trust when I take on an industry or a topic," Hari told Axios.
• "It's really hard to not feel passionate about the fact that you just want American companies to use the same safer ingredients they're using in other countries. It's an unimpeachable topic."

Policymakers have clearly taken notice.

• In March, the White House held the "MAHA Moms Roundtable," hosting some of the best-known influencers like Hari and Honeycutt.

• Hari and Swan participated in a roundtable discussion on food and nutrition organized by Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) last year.
• Temple said it became clear at Kennedy's confirmation hearing he'd tapped into a deep frustration and excitement among this contingent.
• "Moms were just pouring in," she said. "And they're not trying to be political. They're just fending for their children and they're finally feeling heard. They're finally feeling like they're not weirdos anymore."

Reality check: While the moms discuss the value of eating whole foods, getting exercise and quality sleep, they've often veered into misinformation as they advocate for natural health and parental choice, experts said.

• Hari has pushed the message "If you can't pronounce it, don't eat it" — also featured on a recent White House video. Experts have said this claim plays on fear, and could blacklist common essential compounds because of their scientific names.
• Other influencers have surfaced debunked theories about vaccine safety and argued a healthy lifestyle can protect against illness.

Influencers often embrace the fallacy that natural is good and man-made chemicals are bad when casting suspicion on the food and drug industries, said Katrine Wallace, an epidemiologist at the University of Illinois Chicago, who debunks questionable health claims.

• "Those videos go way more viral than mine, because if somebody says 'Here's the secret the government doesn't want you to know,' that's going to be compelling," Wallace said.
• "If I stand up there and say the ingredients are safe, people are like 'Yeah, OK, we've heard this before.'"