Mandatory Calorie Counts

I'm not sure if you're aware but we already have this law in New York State. I live in NYC and calories are every where I go.

As a public health professional and researcher with often controversial views (I don't support Bloomberg's big soda ban), I think this is a great way to move towards a healthier community. The reason is that it is NOT making decisions for anyone.. it does not take the choice away from you.

It's not just fast food. It's all places with multiple stores, including sit down restaurants. If I walk into the Pax downstairs, I can see that the giant cupcake is 600 calories.. and I won't buy it. I didn't used to see that. I can see that a sandwich is 500 calories and choose that instead (and eat 1/2 of eat with soup). But no one is forcing me to eat either one.. I've just gotten more information and for people who aren't tracking every calorie, this can at least help the be a little calorie conscious.

I have alot of issues with laws that prevent primarily poor/minority people from eating what they want .. for example, the soda ban primarily targets low income communities because they drink soda more. No one is banning 500 calorie $8 lattes with caramel and whipped cream from starbucks!!

But I think the calorie laws are great way to educate the public and make the layman a little more calorie aware about what they are actually putting into their bodies.

The natural next question is.. well if people can see the calories, do they know how much they should eat? In NYC, the public health department has paired the calorie labels with constant public health awareness campaigns, especially targeted at fast food. They'll say that the average person shouldn't eat more than 2000 calories a day, but the cheeseburger meal is 1000 calories.. Or it'll say something about children's calorie intake. They have a great one that shows that you have to walk from Yankee Stadium, in the Bronx, to Central Park to burn off the calories in a soda.

I don't know how effective these efforts have been, but research is starting to come out that shows that people are making smarter decisions with more information. It's a good first step.

Why would anyone say this is a bad thing? I didn't know this was happening I think it is awesome! They should also have to list ALL ingredients.

ETA: What is the rationale that this would be a burden on business? They are in the business of selling food, they should not be above regulations. I would actually like to go a step further and make this a national requirement for ALL restaurants (not just corporate chains). If you are selling something meant for human consumption you should be required to list all ingredients and nutritional information even if you are a "mom and pop" shop in backwater east-nowhere. Why should anyone be exempt, are they afraid that once people know what they are serving then they won't buy it? Well too bad, that's just capitalism at work. It might encourage restaurants to make healthier options. Win win.

Since you asked...

It costs money for businesses to print brochures, signs, etc. with calorie/nutriional information. It takes time for that information to be gathered and published (and time = money).

Not to mention, a retaurant's menu is not static. Things change. Menu items get added, dropped, and modified. Not to mention, suppliers can change frequently as well. If a restaurant gets its buns from Sunbeam this month, but next month switches to Bimbo, it has to redo all its calorie/nutritional info. That's more time and money.

And when the government forces businesses to do things, it's not "capitalism at work." It's bureaucracy at work. If businesses choose to publish nutritional data (as some already do), that's great. Potential customers can then make informed decisions. If they choose not to, potential customers can still make the decision whether or not to eat there. "That" is the free market at work: companies and customers making choices without undue interference.

Governing this is pretty much unenforceable. What, are there going to be undercover people taking food back to labs to check to be sure that the numbers are accurate? Bah ha ha.

1.) Too much of a burden on businesses.
2.) Restaurant food estimations are going to be off by hundreds of calories anyway...I worked at a restaurant, no two identical items are prepared identically....except maybe at McDs or similar cookie-cutter restaurants with strict protion control. If you're eating at those places more than a couple times a week, you're going to have worse problems than calorie accuracy. Just because you order something with "no oil" doesn't mean that is how you will get it....and you won't know the difference.
3.) Calorie counting is not that difficult, nor is it that exact. If you can't tell the difference between a fried chicken ceasar and a grilled chicken with dry veggies, you will never lose weight anyway.

We need to stop blaming everyone else for our over-eating. Spend a couple hours learning about which foods are lower calorie. Then take the responsiblity for what you put in your mouth.

And when the government forces businesses to do things, it's not "capitalism at work." It's bureaucracy at work. If businesses choose to publish nutritional data (as some already do), that's great. Potential customers can then make informed decisions. If they choose not to, potential customers can still make the decision whether or not to eat there. "That" is the free market at work: companies and customers making choices without undue interference.

QFT

Bureaucracy doesn't help consumers *or* businesses. It simply justifies their existence collecting our tax money for a paycheck. This information is already available, by the demand of consumers, at most major chains. Making it a new regulation isn't going to have a huge impact on the supply side because consumers that care have already voted with their money.

It's the whole "you can lead a horse to water but can't make them drink" scenario going on here. We can blast information until we're blue in the face but people will continue to make bad decisions because they just don't care. There are those that will make good decisions because they are motivated to do so.

And if you read closely, it applies to businesses with more than 20 locations (at least according to the poster above) so your small businesses won't get totally screwed. Just sayin'.

I think it's smarter than putting it on the wrapper or box of what you just bought.

Obviously you go into certain places having a general idea if this is going to be good or bad for me, but if going with others, or you do want a better choice, makes it easy. It's the think you are choosing somewhat wisely and discover some item in the food blew it away.

And start giving general population some clue as to what they are eating, since they'll never go find the info board and read through big tables of complete nutrition info.

Even if they don't stop going to places with mostly bad things available, may help them realize they like that other food item too, and wow, it's 300 calories smaller to boot. Guess I'll go for the smaller one.

Just as you can start getting used to comparing prices not only at a location but between locations, i think it'll slowly but surely start helping ones get some perspective where they had none before.

I mean really, how many women on MFP think 1200 is just perfectly fine and maybe even too much and if they are recommended to eat 1400 think they'll gain weight - not even realizing they used to probably eat closer to 2500-3000 daily.

Lack of perspective.

I think it hurts business and as we are a capitalist consumer driven economy it could be bad. While I agree that you should be able to access information about nutrition and calorie counts for chains, I think it unnecessary to post such places as drive through windows. If you want the info, then do the legwork tog et it ahead of time.

THIS.

Love the idea!

So one of the new(ish) pieces of legislation from the FDA is on calorie disclosure. The short version of the law (as I, in my limited knowledge, understand it) is that all restaurants or chain food establishments with more than 20 locations must provide full calorie disclosure on their products/menus. For example if you go to McDonalds the drive up window must have all the calorie counts for each product or if you go to gas station/convenience store chain they must have all the information posted as well. This has already been enacted in NY State but I believe is a nationwide change in the laws as it is a piece of the legislation on ObamaCare.

So the purpose of this post is not to stir up vitriol etc about Obamacare. I know we all have drastically differing opinions and if this were about politics then I'd have posted it elsewhere. What I'm interested in are people's opinions on this law. Is this a good thing? Bad thing? Is it helpful? Hurtful? Why or why not?

Not American but we have stuff like that going on over here in Australia and I think it's a positive thing. It allows the consumer to make an informed decision when they go and buy something. If I decide to buy fast food and I look over the menu I can see the grilled chicken burger has less calories / fat than a cheeseburger so I'll choose that instead. I wish all businesses offered this information willingly, went to lunch at a noodle place and had no idea if my meal was 1000 calories or 300.

I agree. America is the FATTEST nation and those (we) who realize we have a problem and want to change it should be able to ask the the nutritional info and freely get it. Those who don't care wont read it anyway. The burden should be on the individual to do what is right for them to live longer, healthier and slimmer lives. The burden should not be on the business. McDonald's does not force me to spend money with them and they don't force me to eat a big Mac. I CHOOSE. And these days I choose the southwestern salad without the dressing :-)

Ok, how hard can it be on any restauarant to do this? we do it every day - weighing our food and logging our calories..

I will say that au ban pan started this and they had lots of healthy low calorie alternatives as well as some pretty hefty calorie bagels, muffins and pastries.

It won't make any difference in the overall obesity stats, much the same way nutritional labeling has impacted obesity since that was introduced a decade or more ago.

Most people know when they're eating something that isn't good for them, or when they're eating too much. Another reason why I think it's pointless is because the food stats are measured in a lab, and it's down to a science. Scientists, or specialists aren't making your food at the local chain...Whose to say you won't get a little extra something here or there? Just a little bit can make a huge difference!

Personally, I feel that instead of over burdening eateries with this law, they should instead crack down on them for deceptive adverts. For example:

When a restaurant advertises a salad to be a healthful choice, but then hides a crazy amount of calories elsewhere (note that this practice is not limited to just salads.)

It won't make any difference in the overall obesity stats, much the same way nutritional labeling has impacted obesity since that was introduced a decade or more ago.

Bingo. I don't like the "added burden" if there really is one ... but, I have to agree with your comment.

Those of us that are trying to make smart choices will benefit from it. Those that are slamming down crap food ALL DAY LONG will not even notice that the info is there. Hell, it will help those of us that are working on getting fit and won't even affect those that could care less. The guy counting macros and treating himself to a Big Mac love it. He/she will just have an easier time filling out their log and checking their macros.

So, I guess it will help those that give a damn and not affect those that don't. Not the intended result, but plus one for us I guess?

Why would anyone say this is a bad thing? I didn't know this was happening I think it is awesome! They should also have to list ALL ingredients.

ETA: What is the rationale that this would be a burden on business? They are in the business of selling food, they should not be above regulations. I would actually like to go a step further and make this a national requirement for ALL restaurants (not just corporate chains). If you are selling something meant for human consumption you should be required to list all ingredients and nutritional information even if you are a "mom and pop" shop in backwater east-nowhere. Why should anyone be exempt, are they afraid that once people know what they are serving then they won't buy it? Well too bad, that's just capitalism at work. It might encourage restaurants to make healthier options. Win win.

Since you asked...

It costs money for businesses to print brochures, signs, etc. with calorie/nutriional information. It takes time for that information to be gathered and published (and time = money).

Not to mention, a retaurant's menu is not static. Things change. Menu items get added, dropped, and modified. Not to mention, suppliers can change frequently as well. If a restaurant gets its buns from Sunbeam this month, but next month switches to Bimbo, it has to redo all its calorie/nutritional info. That's more time and money.

And when the government forces businesses to do things, it's not "capitalism at work." It's bureaucracy at work. If businesses choose to publish nutritional data (as some already do), that's great. Potential customers can then make informed decisions. If they choose not to, potential customers can still make the decision whether or not to eat there. "That" is the free market at work: companies and customers making choices without undue interference.

Oh please. It probably took me all of ten minutes today, conservatively, to do all my logging (including a custom food, all meals, & a recipe). For a business: Do similar, extract data, plug into template, send to underpaid designer to clean up. 2 days max.

How often does a medium to large sized restaurant franchise change its menu, anyway? Smaller businesses that do so daily can literally just print this off in Word, maybe send it to Qwik Kopy. Or write it on a bloody chalkboard.

The problem is, it costs businesses more to buy, develop, store, and prepare nutrition-dense food. It's just cheaper for them to get you to love them by loading up their product with fat, sugar and salt.

Which they know you won't want, once you know that ^ means it's 1000 calories for some kind of bacon chicken cheese Caesar "salad".