Yay!!!! NY Times Calorie Data to Be Posted at Most Chains

[Guest guest]

Now everyone can at least start to analyze just as carefully the fast foods they

eat and feed to their children just as they do the health foods..wait till they

start to list sugar, sodium, fat and all the other stuff thrown into the fries

alone!

The New York Times

March 23, 2010

Calorie Data to Be Posted at Most Chains

By STEPHANIE ROSENBLOOM

Buried deep in the health care legislation that President Obama signed on

Tuesday is a new requirement that will affect any American who walks into a

Mc's, Starbucks or Burger King. Every big restaurant chain in the nation

will now be required to put calorie information on their menus and drive-through

signs.

In other words, as soon as 2011 it will be impossible to chomp down on a Big Mac

without knowing that it contains over 500 calories, more than a quarter of the

Agriculture Department's 2,000-calorie daily guideline.

The legislation also requires labels on food items in vending machines, meaning

that anybody tempted by a king-size Snickers bar will know up front that it

packs 440 calories.

The measure is intended to create a national policy modeled on a requirement

that has already taken effect in New York City and was to go into effect in 2011

in places like California and Oregon. The new federal law requires restaurant

chains with 20 or more outlets to disclose calorie counts on their food items

and supply information on how many calories a healthy person should eat in a

day.

" I think it is an historic development, " said D. Brownell, director of the

Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at Yale. Consumers spend more than half

their food dollars outside of the home, he said, " and when people eat away from

home they eat more and they eat worse. And part of the reason may be because

they don't know what's in fast foods, and they're often shocked to find out. "

While Mr. Brownell acknowledged that some consumers will ignore the nutritional

information, he said labeling would affect the decisions of enough people to

create a public health benefit.

" The broader issue is that this firmly establishes the government's role in

improving the nation's nutrition, " he said.

The measure was approved by Congress with little public discussion, in part

because restaurant chains supported it. They had spent years fighting such

requirements, but they were slowly losing the battle. Confronting a potential

patchwork of conflicting requirements adopted by states and cities, they finally

asked Congress to create a single national standard.

" We have been strong advocates and supporters in trying to ensure this provision

became law, and are extremely pleased that it was signed into law today, " Sue

Hensley, a spokeswoman for the National Restaurant Association, said on Tuesday.

" The association and the industry were supportive because consumers will see the

same types of information in more than 200,000 restaurant locations across the

country. "

Exactly when consumers will see that information is unclear, however. The

legislation requires the Food and Drug Administration to propose specific

regulations no later than a year from now, but completing the rules could take

longer. If a legal battle ensues, as often happens with new federal regulations,

the effective date could conceivably be years away.

Passage of the measure provoked aggravation among some free-enterprise groups,

who saw it as another unnecessary government intrusion into private

decision-making. Critics of the new law also contend that there is little

evidence to show that menu labeling leads people to eat better.

" ly, it seems to me that whether I'm buying an apple or a Big Mac from

Mc's, if they want to sell it to me without any information, I have a

perfect right to buy it, " said Sam Kazman, general counsel for the Competitive

Enterprise Institute, a free-market advocacy group. " This simply is not a

federal issue. "

Under the new legislation, restaurants will be required to display calorie

information for standard menu items as well as calories for each serving of food

at a salad bar or a buffet line. The chains will not have to post calorie

information for daily specials and limited-time items.

More than a dozen states have been considering labeling measures or have already

passed them, though many have not yet taken effect. The new legislation

overrides many existing laws, though some localities will be able to continue

enforcing rules that are more stringent than the federal requirements. New York

City, for instance, is expected to continue requiring chains with 15 or more

outlets to post nutritional data, compared with the standard of 20 outlets in

the federal law.

Supporters of the legislation say that even if menu labeling does not inspire

consumers to eat better, they should be told what they are putting in their

mouths.

" You don't need a study that proves anything, " Mr. Brownell said. " You just have

a right to know. "

Mr. Kazman said that consumers who want that information could look it up on the

Internet. And he added that he was concerned that if Americans did not slim down

as a result of menu labeling, the government might require restaurants to take

further action.

" They'll decide the font's not big enough or the words are not scary enough and

they'll push for more, " he said. " I don't think this is taking us down a very

appetizing course. "

Neuman contributed reporting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/24/business/24menu.html?pagewanted=print

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