News

Albany County, N.Y., passes menu labeling

August 13, 2009

Albany County, N.Y., lawmakers have passed a local law requiring restaurant chains with 10 or more units to post calorie counts on menus and menu boards, including in the drive-thru, according to a story in the Albany Times Union. The measure will go into effect in six months.

Albany County joins New York counties Westchester, Suffolk and Ulster and New York City in passing regulations to require menu labeling. Other municipalities around the country also have passed menu labeling, including Philadelphia, metro Nashville, Tenn., King County (Seattle), Wash., and Multnomah County (Portland), Ore.

Three states have passed menu labeling legislation, including Maine, Massachusetts and California. Other states legislators have passed such efforts this year, including Connecticut, where the governor vetoed the bill,and Oregon, which is still waiting its governor's signature on the bill. Efforts in West Virginia and Maryland failed to pass. Tennesee's governor vetoed a measure that would have prohibited city and county agencies from making their own regulations requiring calorie counts.

U.S. legislators are considering a compromise national menu labeling bill as part of the health care reform act. The bipartisan legislation would require chains with 20 or more outlets to post calories on menus, menu boards and drive-thru displays. The menus or menu boards would also include a statement concerning suggested daily caloric intake and a statement regarding the availability of additional nutrition information.

A number of restaurant chains, however, have asked Congress to broaden the measure so that it is more inclusive and requires chains with as few as three outlets to post the information. Yum! Brands, Sagittarius Brands and Jack in the Box are among the quick-service restaurant companies supporting a broader measure.