ANNOUNCER: NPR.
[COIN SPINNING]
[THEME MUSIC]
WAILIN WONG: Welcome to The Indicator from Planet Money. I’m Wailin Wong.
DARIAN WOODS: And I’m Darian Woods. Earlier this month, the Trump administration revealed a revamped food pyramid, quite literally flipping the old one upside down.
WONG: Indeed, the new design features an inverted pyramid, with the broadest part at the top. Dominating this space are items like a thick cut of steak and a wedge of cheese. Though there are mentions of broccoli and carrots, fruits and vegetables share equal footing with protein, dairy, and healthy fats according to the pyramid’s classification.
WOODS: Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has emerged as a prominent advocate for a carnivorous diet. In a recent press briefing, he claimed he aims to correct the flawed dietary advice of past administrations.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
ROBERT KENNEDY: Protein and healthy fats are essential and were wrongly discouraged in previous dietary guidelines. We are ending the war on saturated fats.
[END PLAYBACK]
WOODS: In his comments, the Secretary references the fats found in red meat, butter, and cheese, suggesting that beef is making a comeback on our plates. But did it ever truly disappear?
WONG: Today, we’ll explore the history of beef consumption in the U.S. to understand how both government policies and industry influences have shaped American eating habits.
[AARON COPLAND, “HOEDOWN”]
WONG: Beef has consistently been a staple in the American diet, regardless of the changing representations in the food pyramid. Historian Joshua Specht traces this deep-rooted affection for beef back to the late 1800s. He is a history professor at the University of Notre Dame, specializing in ranching and meatpacking.
JOSHUA SPECHT: My narrative begins in the late 1800s when affordable, high-quality beef became an expectation among the populace.
WOODS: In those early days, beef production and consumption were largely localized. If you resided near a cattle ranch, access to meat was significantly better than for someone living miles away.
WONG: However, that changed dramatically in the 1800s when the government appropriated land from Native Americans in the West, paving the way for extensive cattle ranching.
WOODS: Meanwhile, in Chicago, meatpackers and railroads erected state-of-the-art facilities for processing animals like pigs, sheep, and cattle. Refrigerated rail cars enabled the transportation of meat across the country, allowing people far removed from cattle ranches to enjoy beef regularly.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
SPECHT: It transitioned from being a delicacy to a daily staple. The measure of a successful American man became his ability to have beef frequently.
[END PLAYBACK]
WONG: According to Joshua, knowledge about nutrition was quite limited in the late 19th century and into the early 20th century. Issues regarding heart health and red meat only entered public discourse decades later.
WOODS: Fast forward to September 1955, when President Eisenhower had a hamburger for lunch and later experienced what he believed to be indigestion. He woke up in the middle of the night suffering from severe chest pain and subsequently had a heart attack.
WONG: Food historian Hannah Cutting-Jones from the University of Oregon describes Eisenhower’s heart attack as a pivotal moment for American consciousness.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
HANNAH CUTTING-JONES: For the first time, Americans were genuinely alarmed. He was a middle-aged man with a meat-centric diet, and this happened just as the diet-heart hypothesis began linking high saturated fat intake to heart disease.
[END PLAYBACK]
WONG: Hannah notes that research during that era indicated a connection between the diets of many middle-aged men and rising rates of heart disease. Yet, throughout this period, beef consumption continued to soar, peaking in the 1970s when Americans consumed an average of 86 pounds per person.
WOODS: All the vegetarian trends of the ’60s and ’70s couldn’t compete with the demand for beef.
WONG: Statistics certainly support that claim. However, Hannah indicates that dietary worries regarding heart health influenced lawmakers when they established the first congressional committee on nutrition in the late 1960s.
WOODS: Soon thereafter, climate change began to emerge as a concern. In 1989, the Environmental Protection Agency released a report indicating that livestock was a significant source of methane emissions.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
CUTTING-JONES: For the first time, there was global alignment on the connection between climate change and methane production from the beef sector.
[END PLAYBACK]
WONG: Around this time, the U.S. government was formulating its first official dietary guidelines, eventually leading to the creation of the initial food pyramid. Hannah observes that the beef industry was eager to regain a favorable image, seeking to prevent beef from being demonized as an unhealthy food that harms the planet.
WOODS: The industry undertook two significant actions. First, it advocated for friendlier language in the dietary guidelines, which was reflected in the first food pyramid released in 1992.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
CUTTING-JONES: The phrasing evolved from “eat less red meat” to “avoid saturated fat” or “reduce solid fat,” terms that were confusing for Americans.
[END PLAYBACK]
WONG: Secondly, farmers and ranchers initiated a promotional campaign to encourage beef consumption. Since the 1980s, they’ve been contributing to a collective fund overseen by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Beef Board, which allocates money for marketing. This led to radio and television ads beginning in 1992.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
ROBERT MITCHUM: As another day draws to a close, people all over the country head home for dinner.
[END PLAYBACK]
WOODS: What will they choose for dinner?
WONG: [LAUGHS] I grew up in the ’90s, so I fondly recall these commercials featuring the evocative music from Aaron Copland’s ballet, Rodeo.
WOODS: Right.
WONG: Rugged actor Robert Mitchum served as the narrator, blending picturesque scenes of American farmland with families gathering around dinner tables.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
MITCHUM: Beef—it’s what’s for dinner.
[END PLAYBACK]
WOODS: It’s presented as the only choice.
WONG: [LAUGHS]
WOODS: Hannah explains that the advertisements primarily targeted men, and their influence persists today. Approximately 12% of Americans account for about 50% of daily beef consumption.
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
CUTTING-JONES: And most of those are men.
[END PLAYBACK]
WOODS: While beef consumption peaked in the 1970s at about 86 pounds per person annually, it has since decreased to around 60 pounds per year. In contrast, chicken consumption has surged, with Americans eating approximately 100 pounds each year.
WONG: It’s largely due to the chicken nugget phenomenon, Darian; it’s staggering! Nonetheless, Hannah asserts that beef has never genuinely declined in popularity in the U.S. Today, red meat enthusiasts have a new ally in RFK Jr. The updated government guidelines suggest that Americans nearly double their protein intake compared to earlier standards and highlight beef tallow alongside olive oil as a healthy cooking fat.
WOODS: Despite the declaration of an end to the war on saturated fats, the recommendations still advise limiting saturated fats to 10% of daily caloric intake. Hannah finds this guidance perplexing: how can people be encouraged to eat more animal protein while simultaneously limiting saturated fats?
WONG: The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association lauded the new guidelines for being clearer and more consumer-friendly than previous iterations. Notably, this organization has connections to the panel that evaluated scientific research for these dietary recommendations. Out of nine panelists, three disclosed receiving funding from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association for research or consulting work.
WOODS: We reached out to the Department of Health and Human Services regarding potential conflicts of interest. Press Secretary Emily Hilliard asserted that the conclusions of the panel were rooted in evidence and scientific integrity.
WONG: Historian Joshua Specht emphasizes that beef has solidly anchored itself as an American cultural icon, serving as a symbol of political identity for some. Republicans, for instance, have discussed perceived attempts by liberals to eliminate hamburgers.
WOODS: Indeed, they’ve referred to them as ‘hamburglers.’
[AUDIO PLAYBACK]
SPECHT: Culturally, I believe there is no adequate substitute. Our identities are so intertwined with our diets, making changes in eating habits gradual.
[END PLAYBACK]
WONG: The dietary guidelines are revisited every five years, meaning we could see further changes on the horizon.
WOODS: I hope they clarify this upside-down pyramid situation. Is the smaller end at the bottom still part of the dietary foundation? It leaves me puzzled.
WONG: You’re concerned about the pyramid’s structural integrity!
WOODS: Absolutely—what if it tips over?
WONG: It’s precariously balanced on a single oat!
WOODS: Exactly.
[AARON COPLAND, “HOEDOWN”]
Copyright © 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
