Members of a Senate Appropriations subcommittee said FDA rules on calorie labels for restaurant and take-away foods are overly broad. The rules are scheduled to take effect on Dec. 1. Missouri Sen. Roy Blunt said retailers would not be able to comply with the regulations because of their complexity and unclear definitions of which items are covered, reports Agri-Pulse. Feedstuffs quoted Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran, the subcommittee chairman, as saying, “The agency’s final rule on menu labeling is overly broad and inflexible, and lacks a great deal of business practicality.” Moran said the FDA wrongly included outlets that do not sell restaurant-style food as their main business.
FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg told the subcommittee the agency did not wish to disrupt businesses or create an additional burden on them with the rules, said Agri-Pulse. The FDA will provide additional guidance to businesses about how to comply with the rules, she said.
The FDA’s description of calorie-labeling requirements for menus and vending machines is available here.