Calories now appear on menus under government plan to tackle obesity
Larger restaurant chains will now be displaying the number of calories in each meal on their menus, websites, and delivery services.
Establishments with more than 250 staff must provide this information under a new government plan to tackle obesity.
However, the plan has been met with backlash from restaurants that say it could hike prices and charities who worry about those suffering from eating disorders.
Masterchef winner Sven-Hanson Britt tweeted the change was a “terrible thing to happen to the hospitality industry”. He warned the regulation “could end creativity, spontaneity and lead to boring tick-box cooking”.
“Kids will grow up in restaurants, hotels, and cafes only looking at that little number below a dish. Choices will be made based on a number alone. The love of flavour, ingredients, history, cooking craft, or nutrition will be lost and masked by a newly perceived focus,” he added.
Beat, the UK’s eating disorder charity, said the new rule could lead to harmful thinking for those who struggle with their body image.
According to Beat, 1.25 million people in the UK have an eating disorder.
The charity said it had asked the government to consider the impact on people affected by eating disorders and to consult “eating disorder clinicians and experts by experience at every stage of the process”.
The Department of Health and Social Care has stated that obesity was one of the biggest health issues the country faced and that food labelling played an important role in helping people make healthier choices.
A spokeswoman added people were used to seeing nutritional information on products sold in supermarkets.
The government said its policy has been informed by research and it had consulted “extensively” with mental health charities and experts.
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