IF YOU NOSH on a breaded chicken roll often, you might not want to know how many calories are in it.

But that’s what is in store as Ireland gears up for the introduction of mandatory posting of calories on menus. Some restaurants already do this, but the move means that all restaurants will have to comply.

The latest step in the process was this week’s announcement by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) of a national consultation by the Department of Health to seek views on the legislation.

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The consultation is based on the Government’s proposed Health & Wellbeing Bill, which will apply to non pre-packaged food served by food businesses for immediate consumption on or off the premises.

The consultation involves an online questionnaire on the FSAI’s website, which is open until 28 October 2015.

The push behind the move is the loosening of belts around the country – a new ‘health of the nation’ survey published this week showed that 60% of the Irish public is either overweight or obese.

Will calorie counts on menus put you off your restaurant dinner?

What’s involved?

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As the FSAI explained:

The proposed legislation will apply to food businesses regardless of size , type of food sold, type of ownership or location.

It will require all menus, including boards, leaflets and digital menus to display calorie details alongside the price in the same font size and colour.

Calorie amounts will be displayed in Kcal (Kilo calories) and KJ (Kilo Joules) using a verifiable tool for calorie counting such as MenuCal (this is a free online calorie calculator developed by the FSAI).

The Department of Health wants to hear what people think on some specific things:

Calculating and displaying calorie information for food served at self-service buffets

Menu specials for sale less than 30 days of the year

Loose food (like sandwich fillings served in delis)

Food meant for sharing

Multi-portion or ‘combo meals’.

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Under the proposed bill, food business operators will be required to display energy content of loose food for sale.

What’s loose food? It is “non-pre-packaged food (ready for consumption on or off the premises”. This means it’s not a head of cabbage, but that roll you buy at a deli.

There will be an enforcement plan for the legislation, which will include “a schedule of inspection, monitoring, sampling and penalties for non-compliance”.

The reaction

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There has been a mixed reaction to the news. Adrian Cummins of the Restaurants Association of Ireland described the situation as the “Irish Water for the Irish food industry”.

The RAI is opposed to the changes, with Cummins saying it has the industry “up in arms”. He said it won’t be implementable, and that “no creativity is being allowed for chefs”.

In a statement, the RAI said:

The RAI fully appreciates the importance of the work being undertaken by the Department of Health and the Special Action Group on Obesity. The RAI recognises the current need to address the area of obesity in Ireland. Recent Budget submissions by the RAI (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016) have repeatedly called for the establishment of a nutrition and healthy eating in the Primary and Secondary School syllabi.

The Association is “firmly of the belief” that education on calories and nutrition would be the best policy direction rather than legislation on calories.

The RAI also said that the Irish restaurant industry is “fully committed in helping to tackle to growing obesity problem in Ireland” and has engaged in various initiatives to promote healthy eating and fresh Irish produce, including the Happy Hearts eat out campaign, and Kids Size Me.

The main reasons why it is opposed to calories on menus are the cost – which it estimates to be between €5,000 and €10,000 per establishment; that nutritional labelling has been in Ireland for years but the country’s collective weight is increasing; and the move will cost the state “tens of millions of euros” to implement.

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The Irish Hotels Federation (IHF), is calling for the calories-on-menus scheme to remain voluntary for hotels and guesthouses.

The IHF will say in its consultation that it is “concerned about the potential adoption of an indiscriminate ‘one size fits all’ approach to mandatory calorie labelling”.

It believes this “would be inappropriate for hotels and guesthouses, many of whose menus change on a daily basis reflecting the use of locally sourced produce and seasonally available ingredients”.

While the scheme would be appropriate for certain food service establishments, it would be unworkable for many IHF members and would stifle creativity in food businesses that are not part of the underlying health issue.

Thumbs up

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Senator Catherine Noone is one of those who believes calories on menus would be a good idea – but she is aware it might not be easy for everyone to implement.

She thinks it is ideal for “the ones who have a regular menu where it is quite easy for them to [calculate calories]“.

Noone said that she agrees it “is more difficult for restaurants who change their menus every day”, and suggested “there should be some leeway perhaps in those circumstances”.

Noone is motivated by Ireland’s waistlines. “I think a lot of people don’t realise how many calories are in the foods they’re eating,” she pointed out.

It’s very basic. I think by highlighting it you’re simply making people more informed in the choice of foods they eat.

“I think any measure that makes people more informed and gives people a greater idea [of calories] is good,” she added.

What about if people choose to ignore calorie counts? “At the end of the day, if there are 1000 or 2000 calories in a meal, at least they know. It’s giving people a bit of help.”

What do you think of calories on menus? Tell us in the comments.