Before yesterday, I'd never heard of Missouri State Rep. Jason Grill, but the young Democrat from the Kansas City area's 32nd district has sponsored a bill to put calorie information on menu boards. House Bill 755 would "require food service establishments that are
one of a group of 15 or more doing business nationally to display
calorie information to consumers on menu boards. The caloric
information will be required to be located alongside prices and similar
in size."
On his blog, Grill writes that Bill 755 is modeled after New York City's code, which California also based its bill on. As we've already reported, putting calories on menus does have an effect on people's eating habits, especially when it informs them that food they might have thought was good for them is anything but.
Grill's main opposition will come from chain restaurants just as it was in New York City. According to the Columbia Daily Tribune, the Missouri Restaurant Association opposes the bill.
If it doesn't pass, that's not because people don't support it, it's because Grill is before his time. As obesity continues to be a problem and people become more comfortable with calorie lists on menus, the idea will be less controversial. Yes, New York and California are liberal bastions but a similar bill just cleared the moderate state of Indiana's House of Representatives. From Indiana to Missouri isn't a stretch.
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Not to get into a thread war but I believe politicians say it's not about nannying but informing. I.E there's a lot of food people have misconceptions about-- Grill mentions Paneras in his bill-- of being healthy when in reality it's anything but.
Umm...last time I checked, every ingredient I use at home has a nutrition label on it (aside from fresh produce). Perhaps you've seen one. For this reason, YES, I can tell you within 10% the calorie content of everything I prepare. Arithmetic isn't difficult.
And knowing the calorie content of a bag of cookies doesn't prevent me from picking one up once in a while. No one, including the government, is telling me I can't eat cookies. The label is merely giving me INFORMATION to allow me to make an INFORMED decision about my nutrition. These menu postings would serve the same purpose.
So let me get this straight, you want to know how many calories in your meal, okay then go home and try to find out how many is in your favorite dishes you make at home. Why should only restaurants have to list the calorie content of what you are eating, why not everything that you consume at home and friends houses. Have we gotten so out of touch with what we eat that we became a diet nation and not a sensible eating people. Cut out the junk food, go back to basics, excercise and do more for the people around you, plant a garden. You know it's harder to live like that, we did it before and we can do it again. WE HAVE BECOME A NANNY NATION, WHEN THE GOVERNMENT HAS TO TELL WHAT TO EAT AND NOT EAT. Get real people it is just another level of control we are giving them.
During our recent vacation, my husband and I had the opportunity to eat at McDonald's a little more than we usually prefer to. But I noticed that the burger I had from there had the calorie and fat content noted on its wrapper, as did the cheeseburger my husband was eating. So did the medium fries we each had gotten with our meals. Being reminded up close and personal like that about the fat and calories in the fries kept me from eating the entire container of them, like I tend to do. (I don't eat McD's fries often...maybe twice a year, so when I do, I enjoy the hell out of the experience.) It didn't do the same for my husband, but he's built differently from me, and can handle that kind of calorie bust now and then.
I think it's a brilliant idea. I hope the bill passes as well.
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