UK FSA Begins Work on Nutrition Information for Out of Home

The FSA wants to see more consistent nutrition information for consumers at the point they make a decision about what they eat out of home and announced that the first step will be the introduction of calorie labelling.

16/01/09 The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) has launched the first phase of its work to introduce nutrition information in a range of catering outlets. The provision of calorie information on menus is already a legal requirement in some cities in the USA including New York, Philadelphia and Portland, as well as across the state of California. Yum brands, who own Pizza Hut and KFC, provide nutrition information on menu boards across the USA.

The FSA wants to see more consistent nutrition information for consumers at the point they make a decision about what they eat out of home and announced that the first step will be the introduction of calorie labelling.

The FSA is talking to a range of companies that will act as early adopters to introduce calorie labelling in the summer, further details of which will be published in due course. This activity will see calorie information provided on menus and other materials available at the point consumers choose what to eat.

The FSA’s work ties in with the Government’s Healthy Food Code of Good Practice, which challenges the food industry to support the public in making healthier choices in an effort to reduce rising levels of obesity and diet related illnesses.

The FSA’s initial plans for nutrition information were launched at a breakfast meeting in London with over 50 of the UK’s largest catering businesses. Those attending were also presented with initial feedback from qualitative research exploring consumers’ views on the availability of nutrition information when they are eating out of home.

Through a series of focus groups, consumers were presented with examples of existing nutrition information made available by some restaurants, pubs, sandwich shops and other food outlets. The research looked at people’s awareness and experience of using this information and which elements they found most useful in helping them to make healthier choices when eating out. The research revealed that:

• There are consumers already using nutrition information where it is available in restaurants, pubs and coffee-shops to make healthier choices.
• Generally, consumers are happy to have the information saying that it is their choice to use it or not.
• Consumers were clear that simplicity is key – they want to see clear and easy-to-use information at the point they choose what to eat. They do not want to have to ask for it or for it to only be provided on the company’s website.
• Consumers want consistency in the information offered to them, making it easier to take healthier options.
• As nutrition information already exists in shops and supermarkets, participants felt that having similar information when eating out was an obvious next step.
• There was support from groups for calorie information at the point of decision as the simplicity of it was appealing.

FSA chief executive, Tim Smith, said: “We’re used to seeing nutrition information when we’re shopping and there is no compelling reason why we shouldn’t have more consistent information about nutrition when we eat out. As a family man, I know how important it is to have clear information in order to make decisions about the food we, our children and anyone else eat when we go out. Providing calorie information is supported by our consumer research and intuitively feels right too - this is the first and simplest step and can only be a good thing for all consumers.”

“The Agency is keen to work closely with industry to see, as a first step, how calorie information can be provided in a clear, effective and simple manner across a range of catering settings.”

This qualitative research follows an omnibus survey carried out by the FSA in June 2008, which suggested that 85% of consumers agreed that restaurants, pubs and cafes have a responsibility to make clear what is in the food they serve. More than 80% of respondents said that nutrition information would be most useful if provided at the point they choose or order food, such as on menus or menu boards.

This work supports the Department of Health's cross-Government obesity strategy Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives. Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives includes a Healthy Food Code of Good Practice which commits to simple and effective nutrition information in catering settings.

A meeting with over 50 of the largest restaurant, pub and sandwich and coffee shop chains was held on 15 January to discuss these plans and to gather views from industry on the best approach to achieving calorie labelling. In due course the Agency will announce the companies that have agreed to take the first steps in adopting calorie information in a number of their outlets. A full and final report of the qualitative research will be published in early February 2009.

Anna Glayzer, Campaigns Co-ordinator at The Food Commission responded to the news by saying, "The FSA consumer consultation backs up Food Commission research from recent months. At the moment consumers are completely in the dark, so the provision of more nutrition information should be welcomed. However, we want to see this information provided by more than a handful of companies on a voluntary basis. Companies already provide this information in the USA and we see no reason why they shouldn't do the same thing here."

In a recent Food Commission survey, members of the public and even obesity experts consistently failed to guess the nutritional values of common chain restaurant menu items.