The government has been micromanaging our health for years by subsidizing soy and corn (thus, high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated soybean oil) and forcing small, organic farms to go under. I see this as the gov't taking one tiny step to make up for its history of undermining our healthy food choices.
So are they going to be doing this for ALL chain restaurants or just fast food?
I am also leery of a micromanaging government...but I think this is a good move. Most chain restaurants have already voluntarily listed their nutritional info on the web, but some are still holding out (Applebees). I think people have the right to know what they're putting in their bodies, espcially with all the seemingly "healthy" stuff out there (innocent looking salads and wraps, etc) that isn't!
Of course this is great for calorie counters, especially if you find yourself on an "unplanned" meal out and don't have access to the web. Much easier to make healthier choices on the fly.
Quilter, that's true, but then again, ALL calorie counts are estimates at best.
Take an apple, for instance. Even if you weigh and measure it, the sugar/calories per gram can vary on varietal, growing conditions, even the placement of that apple on the tree (did it get more or less sun while growing?). Or a piece of beef - how much movement did that beef get? What was it fed? Etc. Even for the same food, calorie counts per gram can vary significantly.
This is likely to be even less accurate (because ingredients won't be weighed/measured) - but even getting within a, say, 200 calorie ballpark would be helpful. I've looked at dish descriptions on menus and thrown out a "high ballpark" guess for calories...and been off by 700-1000 calories. And I'm pretty good at this! So giving me the general AREA of the calorie count is still going to be helpful.
Calorie Counts Are Coming To The Menu
Love it!
