USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services released the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGAs) yesterday. The document focuses on building a healthy diet around whole foods, limiting highly processed foods and added sugars, and prioritizing protein, like nutrient-dense beef, at every meal. Red meat specifically is mentioned as a healthy source of protein in a varied, balanced diet.
The updated DGAs almost double the recommended daily amount for protein intake, increasing it to between 1.2 and 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight, depending on age and individual caloric needs. Additional recommendations include incorporating beef tallow and other healthy fats into the cooking process; using healthier cooking methods like baking, broiling, roasting, stir-frying or grilling, all of which can be used with the wide variety of retail beef cuts available to American families; and introducing nutrient-dense foods like meat during infancy and early childhood to support growing children.
Although highly discussed in recent months, the DGAs do not make any changes to the existing recommendation that saturated fats should not account for more than 10% of daily calories. The guidelines do note that healthy fats are a natural part of real foods, such as meat, and these fats support many important bodily functions, including nutrient absorption.
“As Americans face the double burden of being overfed and undernourished, they are searching for reliable, affordable solutions to meet their nutritional needs and personal preferences. Thankfully, there are a wide range of beef options in the marketplace,” said Shalene McNeill, a registered dietitian and the executive director of nutrition science for NCBA. “On a per-gram basis, beef offers more nutrient value than many other animal and plant options. Incorporating beef in the diet can help support the overall health and well-being of all Americans.”