HHS-produced recording: Kennedy and Nez Perce chairman discuss salmon restoration, tribal diet and health

A recording produced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services captures Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Chairman Wheeler of the Nez Perce Tribe discussing salmon restoration efforts and tribal health.

In the recording, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who in the recording identified himself as “your HHS secretary,” said the tribe is restoring salmon runs through hatchery programs and tied those efforts to broader concerns about diet-related illness among tribal populations. “One of the principal things that we talked about today was the food. They have a hatchery here, and they were restoring the salmon runs,” Kennedy said.

Kennedy said salmon runs historically reached the area in large numbers but are now impeded by dams. “There are 8 dams on the Snake River coming up from the Columbia, and the salmon, which used to come up here by the millions now cannot get over those dams and is starving the Nez Perce people and the other tribes along the Columbia and the Snake River,” he said. He described hatcheries as a mitigation effort: “Well, this is 1 of the ways that they are mitigating it is through the maintenance of these hatcheries, which are meant to restore the salmon population, which connects us to this extraordinary food supply.”

Kennedy also tied diet to chronic disease in tribal communities. “Ultra processed food is poison for every American, but it's disproportionately dangerous for the tribes, which have the highest diabetes rate, the highest obesity rate, the shortest longevity of any demographic in our country,” he said.

Chairman Wheeler thanked Kennedy in the recording for engaging with the tribe. “Thank you for understanding the relationship that we have, with The United States Of America and obligation that we have to 1 another as sovereign partners and to come to the table and solve these problems together,” Wheeler said.

The recording itself is identified in the transcript as produced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The excerpt in the recording presents discussion of ecological impacts on salmon runs, hatchery activity as a restoration measure, and assertions about diet-related health disparities among tribal populations. The recording captures statements of concern and gratitude but does not record any formal decisions, motions or commitments in the excerpt provided.

Details not specified in the recording excerpt include any specific funding amounts, timelines for hatchery projects, names or titles beyond “Chairman Wheeler,” or any formal agreements or next steps between federal officials and the tribe.