|
The
Food Standards Agency has announced a plan to get calorie labelling
onto some restaurant menus by the summer.
The
agency also released the results of research that confirmed there is
strong public support for simple, consistent information at the point
of decision in restaurants. Furthermore, the research revealed that
the public do not find the provision of nutrition information on
websites alone to be useful, and want information to be available
without having to ask for it.
Anna Glayzer,
Campaigns Co-ordinator at The Food Commission said, "The FSA
consumer consultation backs up Food Commission research from recent
months. At the moment consumers are completely in the dark, so the
provision of more nutrition information should be welcomed. However,
we want to see this information provided by more than a handful of
companies on a voluntary basis. Companies already provide this
information in the USA and we see no reason why they shouldn't do the
same thing here."
As the Food
Standards Agency (FSA) announces the first steps to introduce
nutrition information for consumers when eating out, Sue Davies,
Senior Policy Adviser, Which? said:
"Consumers
don't need to be told what to eat, but they should be provided with
enough information to make up their own minds. Supermarket product
labelling has helped, but as soon as you eat out at a restaurant or
grab a sandwich from a coffee shop, watching what you eat instantly
becomes a guessing game.
"After a
successful launch in New York restaurants, this is a good place to
start and food outlets should be open and support the FSA's scheme.
Many people may discover that their lunchtime sandwich, or Friday
night takeaway has a lot more calories and fat than they ever
imagined. We also hope it will encourage the catering sector to work
on new healthier ways to keep the taste up and the calories down."
top |
