Calories on Chain Restaurant Menus, a Follow-Up

New York City’s calorie legislation has caused thousands of jaws to drop, not in preparation for eating, but in awe of the number of calories in their favorite foods.  Marion Nestle, an academic nutritionist, found a blueberry and pomegranate smoothie with 1180 calories!  Newspapers and blogs have been abuzz with the astounding calorie discoveries.  But, is this consumer shockwave causing ripples in purchasing patterns?  It is too soon for sufficient study, and the difficulty of parsing the data between calorie legislation and the recession will remain.

Tom Frieden, New York’s health commissioner, is still confident that posting caloric information will have the desired effects–getting NY to lose weight and have fewer diabetics.  He believes that forcing restaurants to post the (often excessive) calories of their dishes will encourage restaurants to offer healthier dishes and, secondly, will encourage consumers to choose healthier meals.  The end may justify the means, but to reach the end will be harder than first perceived.  

From restaurant associations challenging the legislation in court to the under-educated consumer, getting people healthier via new the menu labels is littered with road-blocks.  The New York Health Department is now recognizing that the average consumer may not know how many calories an adult should have in a day.   To combat this, the Health Department is beginning an ad-hoc educational campaign.  Advertisements will plaster the city, informing passersby that the average adult needs no more than 2000 calories per day.  As Dr. Frieden points out, a customer does need to know the averages in order to be understand relative caloric information.  Knowing that this food item has fewer calories than that one can be very beneficial in itself.  California will be the first state to have state-wide caloric requirements, and it is making sure its legislation includes public education materials.

Every industry fights to keep its details secret, and the restaurant associations of America are no different.   Except, they should know by now that the battle against the public’s right to know is futile.  The court cases are nothing more than delay tactics at this point.  Consumers and consumer interest groups continue to fight for our right to product information and we continue to win.  Even the alcohol industry is succumbing to public pressure and is putting through regulations to make nutrition labeling mandatory.  For sure, in the near future, a lack of information will not share blame for the obesity epidemic.

December 12, 2008  Tags: , , ,   Posted in: Health, Politics

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