ShareThisJust how bad for you is that double-cheeseburger? Soon, the gut-busting details could be staring you in the face.
Lawmakers introduced a bill this week requiring chain restaurants with 20 or more locations to post nutrition information in plain sight, following an E.W. Scripps media investigation.
With the obesity rate hovering at 60 percent of the adult U.S. population, the Labeling Education and Nutrition (LEAN) Act is meant to help diners make better-informed choices when eating out. The measure calls for calories to be posted on or near menus and menu boards. It allows for flexibility, so that fast-food restaurants and sit-down eateries can post the information differently.
The legislation comes after a 2008 Scripps investigation found that popular chain restaurants touted "healthy" dishes that actually contained more calories and fat than the eateries claimed.
Dishes targeted to health-conscious consumers at chains including Chili's, Taco Bell and Applebee's contained as much as twice the calories and eight times the grams of fat than the restaurants claimed in their nutrition information.
While mandating that chains provide information, the new legislation would also protect chains if they display incorrect information.
"The bill aims to provide the nutrition information that is important to consumers, and is clear and concise while at the same time protecting restaurants," said David French, of the International Franchise Association. "People prepare these meals, not robots."
Introduced with bipartisan support in both the U.S. Senate and House, the bill would give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration oversight of restaurant nutrition labeling. The sponsors are Sens. Tom Carper, D-Del., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Reps. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, and Fred Upton, R-Mich.
But don't expect to see new nutrition information signs quickly: The bill gives up to two years from the time its passage for federal officials to develop rules about the nutrition labeling.
While calorie information would be posted on or near menus or menu boards, information about other nutrients, like sugar and sodium, would be available.
"Healthy nutrition and obesity are national concerns that cry for national attention," Carper said. "Our job is to give consumers the tools they need to make smart choices in their everyday lives."
While nutrition information is mandatory for packaged foods, there's no federal rule on nutrition information for restaurants.
Instead, municipalities scattered from New York City to Seattle's King County require nutrition specifics posted at certain types of restaurants. The bill would provide a unified reporting standard.
"There's a patchwork of standards across states and localities," said Matheson spokesman Alyson Heyrend. "It creates a national standard for restaurants."
The National Restaurant Association also cited the current patchwork of rules in its endorsement of the bill.
(E-mail Isaac Wolf at wolfi(at)shns.com)
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)
