Calorie counts Ed Pilkington New York: It was the first city in America to ban trans-fats from food outlets. Now New York has set another U.S. first — from Monday , larger food chains such as McDonald's, Dunkin' Donuts and Starbucks must display the calories of their products on menus.
The new rules apply to all chains with at least 15 outlets across the country — which in the case of New York accounts for 2,000 restaurants. The city authorities say the reform will help New Yorkers get a better sense of what they are eating as part of the on-going battle against obesity and diabetes. Over the next five years, the city says, the labelling will help prevent 1,30,000 New Yorkers from becoming obese and 30,000 from developing diabetes. Some New York outlets had already begun to show calorie counts on their menu boards by the end of last week. Starbucks had also started to display its calories. That revealed that a venti Java chip frappucino packs in 600 calories. McDonalds had yet to post its counts. From Monday, all eyes will be on its outlets, together with the other fast-food chains. If they fail to meet the regulations by June 3 they will face fines. — (c) Guardian Newspapers Limited, 2008
