The New York City Board of Health unanimously approved the warning in September and it affects restaurants with at least 15 establishments throughout the United States, as well as concession stands located in some movie theatres and sports stadiums.
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The association is pushing for a uniform menu and believes local regulations like the salt warning labels could unravel plans for that uniformity.
A new law has gone into effect today that requires chain restaurants in New York City to display a symbol next to food items that contain high levels of sodium. Nick Paolucci, a spokesman for the city’s law department, said in an e-mail that NY is “confident that the Board of Health has the authority to enact this rule” and will address specific claims after the suit is filed. Starting Tuesday, diners will see a small salt shaker icon beside certain menu items that is high in sodium.
“We want our guests to have as much information as needed to make informed decisions when dining in our restaurants”, Tankel said in a statement.
Tiny saltshaker symbols will appear on chain restaurant menus across the city in an effort to fight increasing numbers of heart disease and stroke, writes Reuters. But salt producers say the city is acting on misimpressions about the risks of salt in New Yorkers’ diets.
According to the “Dietary Guidelines for Americans”, published in 2010 by the USA departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services, we’re supposed to be consuming less than 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day. A T.G.I. Friday’s NY cheddar and bacon burger counts 4,280 mg, for example; a Chili’s boneless Buffalo chicken salad has 3,460 mg. The Board of Health is the governing body that oversees the Department of Health. The average American consumes about 3,400 mg of salt per day, and public health advocates have cheered the measure as a smart step to make diners aware of how much sodium they’re ordering. “Almost 80 percent of New Yorkers reported that they are useful”.
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Peter Huenning, an associate professor at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health in Manhattan, said other cities will probably impose similar requirements, forcing restaurants to change nationwide.
