Zane Tankel, chief executive officer of Apple-Metro, owner of Applebee’s restaurants in New York City, said the restaurant chain is on board with giving consumers as much information as needed to make informed decisions when dining.
Advertisement
Any dish containing more than 2,300 milligrams (0.08 oz) of sodium, the daily limits many nutritionists recommend and about 1 teaspoon of salt, must display a symbol next to the dish’s menu item.
The salt warnings represent the first high-profile public health policy pushed by Mayor Bill de Blasio and follows in the footsteps of his predecessor, Michael Bloomberg, who targeted soda, trans fats and smoking, as well as required restaurants to post calorie counts on their menus, according to the Wall Street Journal. The health department noted a “well-established connection” between sodium intake and high blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart attack and stroke.
Chain restaurants that will violate this rule stand to be slapped with a $200 fine, although it is reported that fines will not be issued until March.
The icon, a salt shaker inside of a triangle, must be posted next to items with 2,300 mg or more of sodium in food service establishments that are part of chains with 15 or more locations nationwide. Still, New Yorkers consume slightly less salt – about 3,239 mg of salt on a daily basis – a health department report shows. The Board of Health is the governing body that oversees the Department of Health.
Still, Americans tend to eat more than the recommended daily limit regularly-around 3,400 mg of sodium per day, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Officials say those chains do about one-third of the city’s restaurant business.
While some sodium is necessary, people can usually get enough salt from meat and other items in which sodium occurs naturally, Kramer explained.
And just how much sodium is found in some favorite American fast food treats?
At Chipotle, a burrito with chicken, white rice, black beans, fresh tomato salsa, cheese and guacamole runs 2,380 mg.
A new era in nutritional warnings is going to start in New York City, this week, wherein the chain restaurants will need to place a special symbol on highly salty dishes.
Not everyone is pleased about the city’s latest move.
Advertisement
A separate study tracked New Yorkers’ eating habits specifically.
