President Trump has named Kyle Diamantas, a corporate lawyer and friend of President Trump’s eldest son, acting commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration following Tuesday’s resignation of Marty Makary.
Makary, who had served as head of the agency for 13 months, resigned amid clashes with the White House and lawmakers over the availability of abortion drugs and other issues, including fruit flavored vapes for adults – a top priority for major tobacco donors – and a series of rejections for drugs for rare diseases.
Makary’s tenure saw mass layoffs and persistent turmoil among senior leaders, as well as mounting controversy over the FDA’s handling of new drug and vaccine approvals.
Ross Marchand, executive director of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, accused Makary of making it much more difficult to bring new therapies to market.
“Millions of Americans have paid the price for this soap opera of suddenly spurned approvals, goalpost shifting, and even apparent violations of trade secret law. The FDA needs a leader who will stand up for patients and allow access to new and innovative therapies,” Marchand said.
Politico was the first to report the shakeup. The D.C. publication reported last fall that Makary and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were at odds over vaccine policy and other issues, including peptide supplements and raw milk.
As he left for China, Trump called Makary a “great guy” and “friend,” acknowledging Makary was “having some difficulty.” Kennedy said a search for a new FDA commissioner was underway.
Diamantas, 37, has been serving as FDA deputy commissioner for food and has no medical degree. He represented Abbott in lawsuits over its infant formula recall. Appearing at a number of public events in recent weeks promoting the administration’s health initiatives, Diamantas said the agency was having trouble coming up with a definition for ultra-processed foods, something Kennedy has decried as a major factor in chronic disease.
The Washington Post reported that within the agency, Diamantas, a friend of Donald Trump Jr., is viewed as a non-controversial pick who has endeared himself by keeping senior leadership in place.
Though Diamantas arguably is an expert on regulatory compliance, critics noted his lack of experience in food safety and public health when he replaced food division head Jim Jones, who resigned over staff cuts within the Human Foods Program. As the top food policy official, Diamantas has control over everything from resource allocation to emergency response and supervises food-safety work.
He received his law degree from the University of Florida.
In a Truth Social post confirming the reshuffle, Trump called Diamantas a “very talented person.” The Wall Street Journal reported Trump was upset with Makary for opposing fruit-flavored vapes.
Tobacco interests hailed Makary’s departure.
“We have been disappointed by the pace of nicotine product reviews at the Center for Tobacco Products,” Laura Leigh Oyler, vice president of regulatory affairs at Nicokick.com, told Tobacco Reporter. “If recent reporting is accurate, Commissioner Makary’s removal should be treated as an opportunity to refocus the FDA on timely, evidence-based decision-making. Adult consumers, responsible manufacturers, and retailers need a regulatory process that produces decisions, not indefinite uncertainty.”
The Food Institute Podcast
At SIAL Canada 2026 in Montreal, Food Institute VP of Content and Insights Chris Campbell sat down with Mathieu Brisson, Global Sales Lead at Prestige Maple, to discuss how the company is transforming maple products for a rapidly evolving global food and beverage market.
