Sara Zook, RD-CD

▪ Nine in 10 consumers say they enjoy going to restaurants

▪ Total Food Away From Home represents up to 32% of total daily calories

▪ Seven in 10 consumers say their favorite restaurant foods provide flavors they can’t easily duplicate at home

▪ Eight in 10 consumers say dining out with family and friends is a better use of their leisure time than cooking and cleaning up

▪ 63-76% of dietary energy comes from grocery stores

▪ No age group consumes more than 25% of their calories from restaurant foods

▪ “contrary to popular belief, restaurant-sourced pizza, burgers, chicken and french fries accounted for less energy than store-sourced breads, grain-based desserts, pasta and soft drinks.”

Drewnowski A, Rehm CD. Energy intakes of US children and adults by food purchase location

and by specific food source. Nutr J 2013;12:59

▪ Eating away from home is an intrinsic part of today’s lifestyle

▪ The majority of calories still come from “at home” consumption

▪ Restaurant meals can be higher in calories, fat and sodium

▪ Research and modeling demonstrate food away from home can fit into a healthy lifestyle▪ The new regulations on menu labeling with help consumers make informed

choices when eating out.

▪ Some states, localities, and large restaurant chains were already doing their own forms of menu labeling, but this information was not consistent.

▪ Calorie information will now be required on menus and menu boards in chain restaurants (and other places selling restaurant-type food) and on certain vending machines.

▪ This new calorie labeling will be consistent nationwide and will provide easy-to-understand nutrition information.

You’ll see calorie labeling on restaurant menus and menu boards by May 5, 2017.

▪ In most cases, you’ll also have seen calorie labeling for packaged foods sold in vending machines by December 1, 2016.

▪ However, there are certain food products sold from glass-front vending machines that may not have calorie labeling until July 26, 2018.

RESTAURANTS:

▪ Calorie labeling is required for restaurants and retail food establishments that are part of a chain of 20 or more locations.

▪ “2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice, but calorie needs vary.”

▪ Calories will be listed clearly and prominently on menus and menu boards, next to the name or price of the food or beverage.▪ The calorie count cannot be in smaller type than the name or price of the menu item.

▪ For self-service foods, such as served from buffets and salad bars, calories will be shown on signs that are near the foods.

▪ Calories are not required to be listed for condiments, daily specials, custom orders, or temporary/seasonal menu items.

VENDING MACHINES:• Calorie labeling is required for vending machine operators who

own or operate 20 or more vending machines.

• Calories will be shown on a sign (such as on a small placecard,

sticker, or poster) or on electronic or digital displays near the

food item or selection button, unless calories are already visible

on the actual food packages before purchase.

▪ In addition to calorie information, restaurants are also required to provide written nutrition information on their menu items, including:

▪ total fat, calories from fat, saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, sugars, and protein

▪ You may see this information on posters, tray liners, signs, counter cards, handouts, booklets, computers, or kiosks.

So, when eating out, don’t

hesitate to ask for

nutrition information!

Calorie Information: Check the Menu!

It Will Be On … It Won’t Be On …

➢ Meals or snacks from sit-down and fast-

food restaurants, bakeries, coffee

shops, and ice cream stores

➢ Foods purchased at drive-through

windows

➢ Take-out and delivery foods, such as

pizza

➢ Foods, such as sandwiches, ordered

from a menu or menu board at a

grocery/convenience store or

delicatessen

➢ Foods that you serve yourself from a

salad or hot-food bar at a restaurant or

grocery store

➢ Foods, such as popcorn, purchased at a

movie theater or amusement park

➢ Alcoholic drinks, such as cocktails,

when they are listed on menus

➢ Foods sold at deli counters and

typically intended for more than one

person

➢ Foods purchased in bulk in grocery

stores, such as loaves of bread from

the bakery section

➢ Bottles of liquor displayed behind a

bar

➢ Food in transportation vehicles, such

as food trucks, airplanes, and trains

➢ Food on menus in elementary, middle,

and high schools that are part of U.S.

Department of Agriculture’s National

School Lunch Program (although

vending machines in these locations

are covered)

PROS

▪ “The more informed we are, the better choices we can make. I see this as very positive.”

▪ “I usually try to choose healthier options. The labeling will enable me to have a better idea of the calorie count.”

▪ Health professionals feel by adolescence an understanding of calories develops

CONS

▪ Barriers to usage includes confusion and a general lack of understanding of calorie values

▪ How does 2000 fit each individual needs?

▪ Nutrition information is most impactful when consumers are provided with the context of how calories and nutrients it into their overall diet

▪ Mental health disorders

Manufacturers will need to use the new label by July 26, 2018.▪ However, manufacturers with less than $10 million in annual food sales will have an

additional year to comply.

▪ The current label is more than 20 years old.▪ In order to make sure consumers have access to more recent and accurate nutrition

information about the foods they are eating, it’s time to make changes.

▪ Some serving sizes will increase and others will decrease because by law, the serving sizes must be based on the amounts of food and drink that people typically consume, not on how much they should consume.▪ Recent food consumption data show that some serving sizes need to be revised.

▪ For example, the reference amount used to set a serving of ice cream was previously ½ cup and now is changing to 1 cup.

▪ The reference amount used to set a serving size of soda was previously 8 ounces and now is changing to 12 ounces.

▪ The reference amount for yogurt is decreasing from 8 ounces to 6 ounces.

▪ Nutrient information on the new label will be based on these updated serving sizes so it matches what people actually consume.

▪ Yes, foods imported to the United States will need to meet the final requirements.

▪ The scientific evidence underlying the 2010 and the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans support reducing caloric intake from added sugars.

▪ Expert groups such as the American Heart Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Institute of Medicine and the World Health Organization also recommend decreasing intake of added sugars.

On average, Americans get about 13% of their total calories from added sugars, with the major sources being sugar-sweetened

beverages and snacks and sweets.(soft drinks, fruit drinks, coffee and tea, sport and energy drinks, and alcoholic

beverages, grain-based desserts, dairy desserts, candies, sugars, jams, syrups, and sweet toppings)

▪ The FDA recognizes that added sugars can be a part of a healthy dietary pattern. But if consumed in excess, it becomes more difficult to also eat foods with enough dietary fiber and essential vitamins and minerals and still stay within calorie limits.

▪ The updates to the label will help increase consumer awareness of the quantity of added sugars in foods.

The definition of added sugars

includes:✓ sugars that are either added during

the processing of foods, or are

packaged as such, and include

sugars (free, mono- and

disaccharides)

✓ sugars from syrups and honey

✓ sugars from concentrated fruit or

vegetable juices that are in excess of

what would be expected from the

same volume of 100% fruit or

vegetable juice of the same type

▪Vitamin D and potassium are nutrients Americans don’t always get enough of, according to nationwide food consumption surveys and when lacking, are associated with increased risk of chronic disease.

▪Vitamin D is important for its role in bone health, and potassium helps to lower blood pressure.

▪Calcium and iron are already required and will continue to be on the label.

▪Vitamin A and C no longer have to be on the label.▪ In the early 1990’s, American diets lacked Vitamins A and C, but now

Vitamins A and C deficiencies in the general population are rare. Manufacturers are still able to list these vitamins voluntarily.

ORIGINAL VS NEW

▪ In the past, food label claims referred only to what was inside the food.

▪ Now, food labels cite how the food was raised, grown or processed, whether it is “healthy” or not and if the food contains other components.

No antibiotics or raised without antibiotics▪ USDA regulation

▪ Only used on red meat, poultry, eggs

▪ Producers must provide documentation indicating the animal was raised without the use of antibiotics

No hormones added or no hormone administered▪ USDA regulation

▪ May appear on beef label if producer can demonstrate no hormones were used to raise the cattle

▪ Pigs and egg-laying hens are prohibited from receiving hormones – so “no hormones added” cannot be displayed on pork products or poultry (already a federal regulation)

Organic▪ 100% organic – USDA regulated, contains 100% organic products (excluding salt and water)

▪ Organic – contains minimum of 95% organic ingredients

▪ Made with organic X – contains at least 70% organically produced ingredients

▪ Foods with <70% organic ingredients CANNOT claim “organic” anywhere on the label or package

GMO claims (genetically modified organisms)▪ FDA monitoring only on the terms: “not bioengineered”, “not genetically

engineered”

▪ Those using “GMO” and “not genetically modified” are not approved labeling claims.

Natural (???)▪ FDA has no official definition yet – temporarily defines it as having

nothing artificial or synthetic added to the food

▪ Does not address pesticides, pasteurization or nutrition

Good source or excellent source▪ If food contains 10-19% of daily value of a certain nutrient, it is a “good

source”

▪ >20% of a nutrient is labeled as “excellent source”

▪ Pay attention to what the “source of nutrients” also contains

Healthy

▪ Not necessarily low in fat, but has a fat profile of mostly unsaturated fats

▪ Contains at least 10% of DV for potassium or vitamin D

Light or lite

▪ <50% total calories in product coming from fat

▪ A 33.3-50% reduction in total fat in the product from the original version

Low

Free

▪ Regulated by FDA

Low-Fat Low-saturated

fat

Low-

sodium

Very low

sodium

Low-

cholesterol

Low-calorie

3 grams or

less per

serving

1 gram or less

per serving,

<15% of

calories

140 mg or

less per

serving

35 mg or

less per

serving

20 mg or

less per

serving

40 calories

or less per

serving

Fat-free Sugar-free Gluten-free

< 0.5 grams per

serving

< 0.5 grams per

serving

< 20 ppm of gluten

1 bar = 150 calories

11g fat, 8 g saturated fat

13 g carb

4 g sugar alcohol

½ cup = 130 calories

7 g fat, 4 g saturated fat,

14 g carb

▪ The FDA and USDA enforce many food labeling laws, though the Federal Trade Commission oversees food advertising and marketing.

▪ Rather than identify appropriate and inappropriate terms, the FTC prohibits “deceptive” advertising claims.

▪ Companies are mostly regulated by an omission of facts, they are not reprimanded unless they are unable to substantiate their claim.

POM Wonderful ads promised consumers

they could “cheat death” if they sipped the

pomegranate juice. The drink, the ads said,

“can help prevent premature aging, heart

disease, stroke, Alzheimer’s, even cancer.

Eight ounces a day is all you need.”

▪ Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

▪ FDA – US Food & Drug Administration

▪ https://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/LabelingNutrition/ucm436722.htm

▪ https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/12/30/2016-31597/food-labeling-nutrition-labeling-of-standard-menu-items-in-restaurants-and-similar-retail-food

▪ National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Office of Family - Readiness Policy

▪ FDA, US Department of Health and Human Services

Menu and Food Labeling QUIZ

Name: _______________________________

1. Calorie labeling is required for restaurants and similar retail food

establishments that are part of a chain of 20 or more locations.

a. TRUE

b. FALSE

2. Calories must be posted by the name or price for an item, however,

additional nutrition information such as total fat, cholesterol, sodium,

carbohydrates, protein, fiber and sugar must be available where?

a. posters, tray liners, signs, counter cards, handouts, computers, or

kiosks

b. this information does not have to be available

c. a person must ask for verbal information

3. As part of this menu labeling law, calories must be posted for:

a. Foods purchased at drive through windows

b. Foods such as popcorn, sold at a movie theater

c. Alcoholic drinks that are listed on a menu

d. All the above

4. Why are “added sugars” being added to the Nutrition Facts food label?

a. If consumed in excess, it becomes difficult to also eat foods with

enough fiber and vitamins/minerals and still stay within calorie limits

b. A diet with excessive intake of added sugars contributes to weight

gain and increases risk of chronic diseases

c. To take away the enjoyment of eating unhealthy foods

d. A & B

5. The FDA currently has no official definition of the term “natural” on food

packaging.

a. TRUE

b. FALSE