New FDA Menu Labeling Guidelines: How Will This Affect Your Food Delivery Choices?
Posted by Amelia K. on Friday, December 19th, 2014 with 2 Comments
A change has been made regarding how chain restaurants must display their menu – namely, that large chains will need to list out the calorie count for each menu item in an effort to create more transparency across the food industry. It’s a great move that will hopefully help more Americans understand how food is prepared differently in restaurants than it is at home. The intent is to also help people make healthier decisions as a culture shift has been felt across the nation to support better food choices and promote a more active environment for American families. So with that being said, how will this new guideline affect you on a daily basis? We’ll examine just that below.
New menu guidelines will help you better understand how to choose healthier lunch delivery options – and they could even affect your office vending machine!
Image source: Flickr user PatAnderson
Restaurant Choices
As you look to the menus of your favorite restaurants – at least, the ones that have more than 20 locations – you may have already noticed that many of them have started listing out calorie counts as part of their own internal practices. For some, this was done in anticipation of these guidelines being released. For others, this was in response to concerns from consumers that spurred legal investigations. And still others have used it as a marketing tool to display how much healthier their meal choices are than other similar chain eateries. Regardless of the reason, it’s a concept that you’re likely already familiar with. And while not every restaurant has instituted the menu labeling change, many have – which means you may not even consciously notice the guidelines taking effect over the next several months.
Grocery Stores
Many of your favorite grocery stores will also be required to post calorie counts over menu items in their salad bar and prepared food items. While you’ve likely seen this on the versions of these foods that you heat up at home, it’s definitely new to the fresh food bars. It’s a great way to learn about how all of your favorite meal items can ultimately affect the healthiness of your lunch. While not every establishment you visit (or order lunch from) will be required to display this kind of information, it can be helpful to take note, because those calorie counts from the grocery store can carry over to your favorite lunchtime meals that are delivered every week to your office. So although this nutritional information may not be everywhere, it will definitely help everyone be a little more aware of what they’re eating.
Vending Machines
Believe it or not, even vending machines will be displaying nutrition information before you make a selection, which is great for individuals who want to choose the healthiest vending item when on the go! Because this kind of information can be so enlightening (that candy bar has how many empty calories?!), it can be a great way to show the management at your company why a healthier vending machine can really benefit the whole staff. And this is especially true if there’s already a health-minded culture shift taking place within your workplace!
Menu Labeling: Calories vs. Healthy Choices
As you becoming more familiar with the menu labeling changes going on in your favorite chain restaurants, remember that it’s not only calories you should be paying attention to. No matter what your lunchtime meal delivery entails, getting a meal that’s healthy – meaning it offers the right balance of proteins, whole grains, fiber, vitamins, and minerals – is more important than just ordering the meal with the fewest calories. And sometimes, just being more aware of the food choices available to you can make a big difference in how you order your midday meal!
When you’re hungry for something delicious, Waiter.com can help. Whether you’re looking for a tasty salad or a yummy salmon burger, we’re connected to the restaurants that will make you something healthy to fill your craving. Place an order today – you’ll love how easy it is to choose what you want, and that we deliver right to your office door!
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I think they’re taking this a little bit too far. There’s already so much information and so many different brands that when I go shopping for anything, especially to a grocery store or restaurant, I feel overloaded with extraneous information. It’s an instant headache just sifting out what I actually need to know from the tons of data that I don’t care about. Now they want to put these huge labels on everything and it sounds like just one more annoyance, one more excuse for stores and restaurants to raise prices while wages still stagnate and for literally no benefit to me where I stand. I know what’s healthy, I know what’s not. Most people do, and I doubt these labels will reveal anything shocking to anyone. They’ll just be one more piece of paper in the trash.
Thanks for adding your feedback! We love to hear how this affects everyone on both sides of the spectrum.