| The bill, introduced by Democratic Rep. John Mizuno, is identified as HB1526.
Here's its entire preamble:
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, two-thirds of adults in the United States are overweight or obese. The rate of obesity has tripled among children and teens since 1980. Obesity increases the risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and other health problems and costs families, businesses, and governments millions of dollars each year.
Research continues to reveal a strong link between diet and health. Increased calorie intake is a key contributor to the alarming increase in obesity. Excess saturated fat intake is a major risk factor for heart disease. Increased sodium intake is associated with an increased risk of high blood pressure or hypertension, a condition that can lead to cardiovascular disease such as stroke.
There is an upward trend in calorie and sodium intake that coincides with a significant increase in the number of meals prepared and eaten outside the home in the past two decades. It is estimated that half of the money spent on food goes toward food from restaurants and other food service establishments, which is also where one-third of calories are consumed.
The legislature finds that improving the availability of nutritional information about food from food service establishments will help curb unhealthy food consumption. Three-quarters of American adults report using the information found on nutritional labels required by the federal Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990. But while nutrition labeling is currently required on most packaged foods, labeling for restaurant foods is only required when nutrient content or health claims are made. Given the lack of nutritional information for most restaurant foods, it is difficult for restaurant-goers to make decisions that limit their calorie and sodium intake.
The purpose of this Act, which shall be known as the "Menu Education and Labeling Act", is to require a retail food establishment that is part of a franchise composed of ten or more establishments to maintain nutritional information on each of its standard menu items and have that information readily available to provide to the public upon request.
The bill's full text, real-time status, committee reports, and testimony can be obtained by searching for HB1526 at the state legislature's website:
http://capitol.hawaii.gov/site1/docs/docs.asp
Instructions on signing up for an RSS feed on the bill are here:
http://capitol.hawaii.gov/site1/docs/rss_help.asp
The bill itself is interesting. But a fascinating twist is that the local restaurant trade group is in full support, as reported by the Hawaii House Blog:
Rep. Mizuno worked with the Hawaii Restaurant Association to craft language for this bill. "Victor Lim, the Chair of the Association has been outstanding in his support to move this measure forward," he said.
I've previously only been aware of the HRA's involvement in the legislative process when it has fought against government regulation.
So it sounds like a progressive move for the organization to support this legislation. Right?
But here's where the story gets even more interesting.
The Hawai`i chapter of the American Cancer Society, the Hawai`i chapter of the American Heart Association, the State Department of Health and the Hawai`i Nutrition and Physical Activity Coalition all oppose the bill! Why? Because upon close review of the bill, it's clear how limited its scope is. The legislation would only apply to chains with 10 or more restaurants and would not require nutritional information on drive-through menus. It just doesn't go far enough to make much of a difference.
Here's the testimony submitted earlier this week by the entities I mentioned:
http://capitol.hawaii.gov/session2009/Testimony/HB1526_HD1_TESTIMONY_FIN_03-04-09_1_.pdf
This bill appears headed to the state Senate, where there will likely be additional opportunities to testify, if you're interested. I'll try to keep you posted. |
