As US and UK restaurants begin to include nutritional information on their menus, is it likely that Ireland will follow suit? ask MICHAEL McHALE.
If US trends are anything to go by, calculators may soon be the must-have item when eating out for people this side of the Atlantic.
Earlier this month, an agreement was reportedly reached among representatives of restaurateurs, nutritionists and lawmakers in the US to put the calorie content of foods on menus so that diners can add up how their meals affect their diet.
The results of this agreement are to be included in a health reform bill and apply to eateries that are part of a chain of restaurants of 20 or more.
The move follows a decision by 18 British establishments to display the amount of calories that are in each meal available at their premises.
“It’s something that we would certainly actively support,” says Dr Mary Flynn, chief specialist in public health nutrition at the Food Safety Authority of Ireland, when asked if such measures should be applied to Irish restaurants.
“I think we could start with calories, but obviously there would be checks to make sure the consumer isn’t being misled.”
In the Republic, 61 per cent of people are overweight or obese and more than 2,000 premature deaths every year are because of obesity.
While the benefits of the displaying of calorie information on restaurant menus are obvious for anyone looking to lose weight or keep a watch over their diet, not everyone agrees that making this compulsory is such a good idea.
According to Adrian Cummins, the chief executive of the Restaurants Association of Ireland, the work and costs involved in analysing a menu for nutritional information far outweigh any advantages that such a move would seemingly have on the public’s health.
“I think that consumers are highly educated and they know the level of ingredients that are across the board,” he says.
“If you had to include it would be a logistical nightmare.”
Cummins adds that such a move would be particularly impractical for restaurants at the higher end of the market where menus are changed often.
Lorcan Cribbin, head chef at Bang Café in Dublin and a former Commissioner General of Euro-Toques International, an organisation that lobbies to support best food quality practice as regulated by European and national institutions, is largely in agreement with Cummins.
“The problem would probably be for the higher end of restaurants that change their menus often,” says Cribbin, adding that if a measure requiring restaurants to display such nutritional information was introduced, “I don’t think the customer would trust us.”
Indeed, the issue of reliability of figures is one that is mentioned by those both for and against the introduction of calorie information on menus.
“There would have to be good portion control ,” says Flynn. In terms of the practicality of including calorie content figures, Flynn adds, “I don’t think it’s very difficult.
“I think initially there’s work to be done [in hiring nutritionists] but there are food composition tables available.”
Another argument for the introduction of such nutrition figures is that some seemingly healthy options may contain more calories than one would initially expect.
As Irish Heart Foundation dietitian Dr Janis Morrissey explains: “Say with a salad, people think ‘oh, that’s a healthy choice,’ but what sauces have gone into it?
“There is confusion and it’s still a bit of a minefield for consumers eating out.”
Morrissey also acknowledges the increased challenges faced in implementing this measure by restaurants that regularly change their menu.
According to her, such establishments would be used by the majority of the public on special occasions, so knowing how many calories are in their meals is not as significant as knowing the effects that food in eateries which cater to the public on a more regular basis (and would usually follow the same menu for each day) has on a person’s diet.
“I think that’s where it’s going to have a bigger impact on people’s health,” she adds.
As debate over the inclusion of nutritional content in menus continues, research shows that consumer demand for such information is growing.
A survey in February of 35 restaurant and pub chains across Britain, incorporating 7,000 units, showed that more than 60 per cent had received more requests for nutritional information in the past 12 months, while 81 per cent expected demand for such information to increase in the future.
According to Dr Dan McCartney, lecturer in human nutrition and dietetics in Dublin Institute of Technology, these findings can be used to the restaurateurs’ advantage.
“If there’s a demand from consumers for this type of information then I think restaurateurs will be happy to provide it,” he says.
“Also, there may be a commercial imperative to do that – it may act as a unique selling point.”
But, for McCartney, nutritional information on menus alone is not enough to make a serious attempt to inform the public about the effects that the food they eat has on their health – the public must also be educated on the subject.
“I think has to be taken into context in terms of consumers’ baseline knowledge. It’s most useful in terms of educating people about what their overall calorie intake is every day.
“It needs to be part of a broader movement to educate people,” he adds.
As the arguments for and against the introduction of nutritional information on restaurant menus in Ireland continues, in America more headway on the subject is being made.
With the EU continuing to implement food labelling legislation, it is expected by many that soon their attention will turn to eateries, and should that happen, we may need our calculators on hand to count the cost that eating out has on our health.