New National Menu Labeling Provides Information Consumers Can Use To Help Manage Their Calorie Intake

In May 2018, Federal regulations went into effect that are designed to help inform consumers about the calorie contents of the foods and beverages offered by many of the Nation’s restaurants. The regulations require restaurants and similar food service establishments that are part of a chain of 20 or more locations nationwide to post the calorie content of all standard items on menus in a font and format similar to that of the item’s price or name. To help consumers place the calorie information in the context of a total daily diet, covered establishments are also required to post on menus, or on a sign in close proximity to self-service foods, a statement that reads “2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice, but calorie needs vary.” The regulations were set forth in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 and finalized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on December 1, 2014.

This point-of-purchase labeling expands consumers’ access to calorie information about the foods they order away from home. Before the Federal mandate, some food service establishments voluntarily provided calorie information to their customers, but mandatory disclosure was limited to a handful of cities, counties, and States. FDA estimated that the new menu labeling regulations would affect 298,600 retail food establishments, organized under 2,130 chains, in the United States. Using nationally representative data pertaining to a period before implementation of the new menu labeling regulations, a recent ERS study found that average total daily calorie intakes were lower for adults who saw and then used restaurant menu labels relative to those who saw and chose not to use them.

Nutrition Rules of Thumb Can Trip Up Consumers

Restaurants offer items with a range of calorie contents to cater to a wide array of consumer tastes and preferences. To get a sense of the average and range of calorie contents in restaurant meals, in a 2014 study, ERS researchers analyzed data on the amounts of calories in meals that were being offered at two fast-food and six full-service chain restaurants in Montgomery County, MD. Fast-food restaurants are eating places where consumers order and pay for food from a counter before eating. In full-service restaurants, wait staff take consumers’ orders for food at their tables and consumers pay after the meal is eaten.

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