US FDA Pushes Back Menu Labeling Requirements By Year

July 9, 2015 by Dave Haynes

Obesity and overweight concept as the hand of a person emerging from a heap of unhealthy fast food and desperately reaching out for diet and dieting help as a symbol of bad nutrition proplems.

Hat tip to Raffi Vartian at Signagelive for flagging this …

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has postponed by a year federal menu labeling requirements, with the FDA saying it needs to provide more clarification on rules and regulations that are not necessarily being warmly greeted by all affected parties.

“Industry, trade and other associations, including the grocery industry, have asked for an additional year to comply with the menu labeling final rule, beyond the original December 2015 compliance date,” the FDA says in its announcement. “The FDA agrees additional time is necessary for the agency to provide further clarifying guidance to help facilitate efficient compliance across all covered businesses and for covered establishments to come into compliance with the final rule.”

What that means is restaurants now have another year to get things together, as opposed to a few months. The previous deadline was December 2015.

So why does that matter?

Well, software, display and content companies chasing digital menu board business have often cited the looming requirement for nutritional labeling as a reason for restaurant operators to finally give in and convert static menus to digital. It almost always makes sense anyway, but the FDA rules and regs were and are being used as a particularly compelling reason to act.

More on the story here …

 

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