For consumers who take their health into consideration when eating, calorie postings on menus will greatly impact their decision when making a food selection. (Diets in Review) The Food and Drug Administration has finalized menu labeling rules that will require calorie information to be listed on menus and menu boards in chain restaurants. The rules can also apply to vending machines and similar retail food establishments. Alarmingly, Americans eat and drink almost one –third of their calories away from their residence. If calorie information is given directly to consumers at restaurants, a huge change could be made in the lives of many Americans, by simply choosing to eat healthier. The menu labeling rule will apply to chain restaurants that …show more content…
One of the main benefits of menu labeling is giving consumer’s information directly to help them understand what exactly they are consuming. The average calorie intake for consumers is 1,800 to 2,000 per day. Even though consumers may not feel like they are eating too much, sometimes over half of the recommended calories will be consumed in just one meal. Menu labeling will allow consumers to track their calorie intake if restaurants will have the calories displayed on their menu. Most importantly, menu labeling focuses on the prevention of chronic diseases, which are typically related to obesity (Diets in Review). By providing nutritional information, restaurants could gain new customers. Since menu labeling is not being implemented in all restaurants, consumers are currently looking for establishments who provide nutritional …show more content…
The main disadvantage is the cost of restaurants labeling their menus. The additional cost will be due to printing updated menus, displays, and analyzing the restaurants products to determine the amount of calories each item contains. Another downfall of menu labeling is that the sales of higher calorie food could have a tremendous decrease (Diets in Review).When a consumer sees how many calories a cheeseburger contains, they might choose a grilled chicken sandwich or a salad instead. Many people have mixed emotions about implementing menu labeling. Sometimes it requires a lot more than just simply crunching the numbers. Eating healthy involves so much more than just looking at the number of calories in a particular food. It also involves looking at the sugars, trans fat, protein, sodium, etc. It is very important to have an experienced professional conduct the nutrition analysis to make sure the calorie information is
In discussions of Zinczenko, one controversial issue has been whether we should blame fast food restaurant on obesity. On the one hand, Zinczenko argues that we should blame the fast food restaurant, for their lack of warning labels. My own view is that they both play a big part , yes fast food should label their foods nonetheless consumers should know to control themselves and not buy extra-large drinks and just sit on the
Zinczenko explains, “Where are consumers supposed to find alternatives? Drive down any thoroughfare in America, and I guarantee you’ll see one of our country’s more than 13,000 McDonald’s restaurants.” He continues, “Now, drive back up the block and try to find someplace to buy a grapefruit.” (Zinczenko 463). What’s the chances of finding a fruit stand rather than a fast food restaurant? In addition, consumers are not being informed on what exactly they are taking in. There are no calorie charts posted on the food, nor are there warning labels connected to it. Thus, the purchaser is becoming unhealthy and eventually obese. Zinczenko stated fast food restaurants, “Would do well to protect themselves, and their consumers, by providing the nutrition information people need to make informed choices about their products.” Furthermore, without warnings, there will consequently be a higher number of ill and obese
Knowledge is power, the more the consumer knows about the food they are eating the healthier choices they’ll make. For instance, in McDonald’s Grilled Honey Mustard Snack Wrap and a small French fry, from McDonald’s is around $6.00 and contains 420 calories 24g of fat (6.0g saturated).If you were to compare that to a Big Mac meals that comes with medium size fries and coke soda would be about 980 calories the Snack Wrap would be a healthier alternative and it would be about the same price $6.00. When fast food chains put labels on their food like McDonald’s consumers can’t
Best selling author of Eat This, Not That, David Zinczenko’s article “Don’t Blame the Eater,” blames the fast food industry for the growing rate of obesity in the United States. Zinczenko’s main idea is that fast food companies should have warning labels on all the food they supply. Zinczenko believes that since health labels are put on tobacco and preserved food product, fast food industries should put labels on today’s fast food. Discussions about the availability of fast food compared to healthier alternative were brought up as well. Zinczenko states that when looked at, a salad from a fast food restaurant could add up to half of someone’s daily calories (155). He believes that because of fast food, Americans are having more health risks, which includes an insane rise in diabetes. Some agree with Zinczenko saying fast food companies should be the ones responsible to show people the truth about their foods. On the other hand Radley Balko, a columnist for FoxNews.com, states that fast-food consumption ...
Have you changed your mind about the effect of restaurant labeling on your decision about what to order after seeing the actual calorie content?
Restaurants have a greater possibility of getting more money if they have "special" nutritional labels. Many people dislike the food label, yet some people are for them. Labels would not benefit anyone because they are not always right, and they sometimes just want the state to give them As for their grade, yet it sometimes if negative to have new foods on the menu. A food has to be evaluated before put on the menu, therefore it would be even more complicated. The author proclaims, "But for the restaurant, it is a nuisance and a potential threat to their business. It means that before a new item goes on the menu, it has to be evaluated." This statement explains that before a new item goes on the menu trouble is beginning. Labels are no help they just bring in more money because prices get higher from healthy
People who are going on a diet prefer foods that don't have many calories. They won't know which food will have more calories than the other if the label wasn't there. Therefore, they'll be eating foods with a lot of calories, causing them to be confused about the food they're eating and if they're eating the right one. According to the passage "Label the Menu", it stated that labeling meals
Calories are a measurement for energy and are often measured as the heat energy absorbed from the digestion of foods (“Calories.”). Calories seen in labels of food are not measured in heat energy, but as estimated comparison of energy density (Atkins). Despite that calories are used as measurements of the energy in food, it is not the only thing t...
Most of the time, they know the importance of reading food labels but do not practice it in a regular basis. It sounds time-consuming and impractical. Tackling this problem needs to involve the patients’ biggest concern. Is it worth it to neglect your body’s needs in a short run to suffer the rest later? 6.
In Read all about it: Calorie counts are everywhere, but do we care? the author, Los Angeles Times and Newsela Staff includes the main idea that being required to include calorie counts on menus in restaurants or other eateries, does not influence customers choices on what they order, as much as the food being served to the consumers. In Calorie counts are everywhere, but do we care?, by Los Angeles Times adapted by Newsela Staff, researchers found in 2012 to 2014 restaurants reduced calorie counts in the food they serve after posting the calorie counts on their own menus because of new laws added. The author states, “The study suggests the help comes from restaurants’ changing what they serve, instead of diners "changing their behavior.” (Los
McDonalds, a limited service restaurant whose staple menu items are hamburgers and fries intends to offer a Turkey burger option in response to the consumer’s desire for healthier menu options. This may lead the way for future Vegan menu options. This new option will follow the procedures already in operation. Cycle Time Cycle time is the amount of time needed from the initiation of the concept to the completion of the project where new item is implemented into the menu. Initially, the concept is reviewed.
There once was a time where words like "light" and "low-fat" on food packages that had no nutritional meaning. As a result, shoppers were often led to believe they were buying products that were more helpful than they really were. Nutrition panels on labels were also confusing and hard to read. But the Australia New Zealand Authority (ANZFA) changed all that. In March 2001 the ANZFA defined new standardized terms that appear on food labels such as "low-fat", "reduced" and "lean" to control how food manufacturers could put their facts that are relevant to most of our dietary needs. This meaning that food labeling helps consumers to make the best possible food choice.
Daily, millions of people are perusing the grocery store, buying food for their families, completely unaware of what they are purchasing. A study on consumer research regarding food labels by the FDA found only a small percentage of people actually read the food labels and understand what they mean apart from only the calories and fat; ingredients are another story. “According to a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, about 61.5 percent reported using the nutrition facts panel when deciding to purchase food. Fewer people paid attention to the list of ingredients” (CNN Health). The FDA is aware that labeling could help reverse the acceleration we are seeing in heart diseases and obesity, but labeling does not help people to read the ingredients if they do not understand pseudonyms, and vitamins. “The surveys also revealed frequent misunderstanding of the meaning of the daily/value column that shows how each nutrient fits into a healthy diet, “(American journal Nutrition, WEB). Many different harmful ingredients are secretly hidden in labels and people skimming ov...
Food is a major part of everyone’s everyday life. It’s hard to imagine life without the chocolate cake on your fingers or a carne asada taco in your mouth. Enjoying delicious desserts and fast food seem extremely magnificent to eat and spend money buying them. Although, there have been many controversies in the United States on how it’s the largest country with the most obesity regarding children, which affects their health, many people are still going throughout their day snacking. Many people in America are having full course meals with thousands of calories in one sitting not knowing the short term or long term side effects that are going to take a huge toll on their lives. Food is delicious, but it comes with a secret behind the savoriness/sweetness.
On every food product there is a table of nutritional information that states the exact health contents of the food. There is also a list of ingredients that provides consumers with details regarding the food. In today’s times, consumers are flooded with choices of seemingly similar products. I do not know the difference in nutrition amongst these products. Food labelling is often misleading and deceptive, and I feel as if I have been left in the dark, but also that there is a hidden shadow side that may exist as consumers’ ignoracne may lead to naive incorrect choices.