As a growing number of states adopt the practice of making fast-food restaurants list calories on their menus, Congress continues in its struggle to implement this obesity-combating tactic nationwide, reports Reuters Health.
California is the first U.S. state to require fast food restaurant chains to list calories on their menus, with New York City following suit earlier this year. There are currently more than a dozen states that are considering similar health code provisions, a move aimed at promoting healthful eating.
While some lawmakers in Washington, D.C. remain someone resistant, contending that this is a matter better left to the states, there is hope for national passage of this measure when Congress goes next goes into session.
Congressional proponents of the passage of this health code prevision include:
Sen. Tom Carper of Delaware (D)Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska (R)Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut (D)Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa (D)
However, support has also come from what would consider to be an unlikely place: a member of the fast food industry.
Jonathan Blum, a senior vice president with Yum Brands, stated that his fast food company supports a uniform nationwide approach that would apply to supermarkets, convenience stores and restaurants, including his own Pizza Hut and Taco Bell brands. Furthermore, Yum has pledged to display calorie information on menus at its company-owned stores by 2011.
Considering World Health Organization reports that one in three adults living in the U.S. are overweight, this caloric content listing measure — though not a panacea for the weight crisis we face — is certainly a move in the right direction.
More like this in Fast Food and Media Watch Nov 21, 2008
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