RFK Jr. Launches 'Real Food' BBQ Tour in Austin

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visited Terry Black's Barbecue on Feb. 26, 2026 to kick off what he called a "national BBQ tour."

"First stop on my national BBQ tour, I visited Terry Black's to EAT REAL FOOD," Kennedy wrote in a post including photos of a piled-up barbecue spread at Terry Black's Barbecue.

The visit corresponds with Kennedy's long-running pitch that America's health problems start in the grocery aisle and that "real food" should replace what he and his allies describe as an ultra-processed, additive-heavy diet. Since taking the job in the Trump administration, Kennedy has elevated that idea into a broader "Make America Healthy Again" push that targets ultra-processed foods and additives as drivers of chronic disease.

Federal health agencies have also leaned into the "real food" framing in recent public messaging. In January, the Department of Health and Human Services promoted a "historic reset" of federal nutrition policy that repeatedly emphasized "eating real food" as a centerpiece of the administration's agenda.