Steak 'n Shake hires first 'Chief MAHA Officer'

Steak ’n Shake on Tuesday announced its first Chief Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) Officer who the company said will help guide the advancement of nutritional integrity in line with the Trump administration’s national movement geared toward eliminating chronic disease. 

Michael Boes, a former senior adviser at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), was selected to serve as the company’s chief MAHA officer. 

“Customers should never have to choose between taste and health,” Boes said in a statement touting Steak ’n Shake’s ingredient transparency. 

“When restaurants commit to both, they serve better food and they build lasting trust,” he added.

The company made headlines last year for transitioning from vegetable oil to beef tallow to cook their fries in.

Sardar Biglari, Chairman and CEO of Biglari Holdings, the owner of Steak ‘n Shake, said the decision to appoint a Chief MAHA Officer will continue to make the restaurant the “good differentiator” in fast food. 

“Michael is ideally suited for such a role, with his deep understanding of nutrition and his experience at the highest level of health policymaking,” Biglari added.

“To put it simply, good-tasting food should also be good for you.” 

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visited a Steak ’n Shake back in March and said the company “has been great” after it made the switch from cooking its fries in seed oil to beef tallow, according to ABC 7.

Kennedy’s MAHA movement is based upon a broader push to reduce food dye, unhealthy oils and processed sugars from the staple American diet.

As cited in the MAHA report, ultra processed sugars are found in 75 percent of packaged foods.

Sixty-three percent of the U.S. population aged 2 years old and older derives more than 10% of their daily calories from added sugars, per the Department of Agriculture.