When it comes to implementing the
long-delayed national menu labeling law
for chain food service establishments, the food industry is working
overtime to chain the hands of Food and Drug Administration officials.
Not only is the final rule and implementation more than a year late,
rumors have been swirling that the White House, probably deluged by
industry lobbying, may be the force behind the delay. Why would the
Obama White House, which brought us first lady
Michelle Obama's nationwide campaign for healthier eating, want to delay and possibly weaken a menu labeling law passed by Congress in 2010?
The stalled law would require chain restaurants, some vending machine
operators and chain food-service establishments with restaurant-type
food like movie theaters, convenience stores, and supermarkets, to post
calories on their menus and menu boards. That's it -- a law that will
provide consumers calorie information, at point of purchase, so they can
make better decisions for themselves and their families.
National menu labeling, when finally implemented, could have a major
impact on our diet because Americans get one-third of our calories while
eating out. Numerous studies have linked eating out with obesity and
higher caloric intakes. One study found that children eat almost twice
as many calories at a restaurant compared to a meal at home.
Prior to the 2010 passage of the national law, a number of
localities, including Philadelphia and Seattle/King County, successfully
implemented menu labeling policies. Approximately 60 percent of New
York State's residents have access to calorie labeling at chain food
service establishments. New York City passed the nation's first menu
labeling policy, which went into effect in 2008, followed by the passage
of similar laws in five New York counties. Contrary to industry's dire
predictions at the time, implementation went smoothly, and did not cause
"financial ruin" for any chain food service establishment. Follow-up
studies have shown that menu labeling is helping consumers make better
selections when eating out and is
encouraging companies to reformulate high-calorie, high-fat products.
What's particularly maddening about the food service industry's
full-court press against the stalled federal law is that the measure is a
perfect fit with its much touted "personal responsibility" mantra.
Consumers are responsible for making healthy food choices, not industry,
food service establishments exclaim. But how can consumers make better
choices if industry continues to fight to hide the caloric content of
their food?
Unfortunately, there are good reasons for the restaurant industry to want to continue to keep calories a secret.
Center for Science in the Public Interest's Xtreme Eating 2013
found that even relatively healthful sounding restaurant fare could
pack an extraordinary caloric wallop -- and the industry would hate for
the consumer to catch on. Who would guess that The Cheesecake Factory's
Bistro Shrimp Pasta contains a day and a half's calories (3,120), or
that Smoothie King's large Peanut Power Plus Grape Smoothie has 1,460
calories?
And a
recent study
funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation found that fast food fare
isn't getting much healthier. In spite of industry's pronouncements that
they want to help halt our nation's obesity and chronic disease
epidemics, the study found only tiny nutritional improvements in fast
food over the past 14 years.
It's safe to say that many food service establishments have
demonstrated that they are willing to fight tooth and nail to prevent
their customers from learning the caloric content of their food. The
pizza industry, which is
lobbying heavily to be exempted
from the menu labeling law, argues that because they've posted
nutritional information online, that's enough. Let's get real. How many
people go online for nutritional information before they pick up a slice
or a pie? Customers deserve to see calorie information when and where
they are placing their order.
Lobbyists for the movie theater, convenience store and supermarket
industries are also seeking exemptions, even though they sell large
portion sizes of restaurant-style food that often contains more calories
than people expect.
It's ludicrous that chain restaurants and food service establishments
trumpet personal responsibility yet rail against providing useful,
basic nutrition information to the consumer at point of purchase. It's
even more ludicrous that this important law has been stalled since 2010.
Americans want and deserve calories on menus and menu boards so they
can make their own decisions about what to purchase and eat. President
Obama and the FDA should stand up to industry and ensure that Americans
can make informed choices in the wide-range of food service
establishments allowed under the law.
This post first appeared in The Hill's Congressional Blog on May 28, 2013.
For more by Nancy Huehnergarth, click here.
For more healthy living health news, click here.
Why would the Obama White House, which brought us first lady Michelle Obama's nationwide campaign for healthier eating, want to delay and possibly weaken a menu labeling law passed by Congress in 2010? Why, indeed? What is the basis for the disconnect?
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