1.This Act may be cited as the Howard M.
Metzenbaum Menu Education and Labeling
Act
or the MEAL
Act
.
2.Congress finds that—
(1)research continues
to reveal that—
(A)there is a strong
link between diet and health; and
(B)diet-related
diseases start early in life;
(2)(A)increased caloric intake
is a key factor contributing to the alarming increase in obesity in the United
States;
(B)according to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, 2/3 of American adults are
overweight or obese, and the rates of obesity have doubled in children and
tripled in teens since 1980;
(C)obesity increases the risk of
diabetes, heart disease, stroke, several types of cancer, and other health
problems; and
(D)the annual cost of obesity to
families, businesses, and governments in the United States is
$117,000,000,000;
(3)over the past 2
decades, there has been a significant increase in the number of meals prepared
or eaten outside the home, with an estimated 1/3 of
calories and almost half of total food dollars being spent on food purchased
from or eaten at restaurants and other food-service establishments;
(4)(A)excess saturated fat
intake is a major risk factor for heart disease, which is the leading cause of
death in the United States; and
(B)heart disease is a leading cause of
disability among working adults and its impact on the United States economy is
significant, estimated in 2005 to total $142,000,000,000 in healthcare
expenditures and lost productivity;
(5)(A)increased sodium intake
is associated with increased risk of high blood pressure, or hypertension, a
condition that can lead to cardiovascular disease, especially stroke;
and
(B)the proportion of adults with high
blood pressure is 45 percent at age 50, 60 percent at age 60, and more than 70
percent at age 70;
(6)the Nutrition
Labeling and Education Act of 1990 (Public Law 101–535) requires food
manufacturers to provide nutrition information on almost all packaged foods,
however, restaurant foods are exempt from those requirements unless a nutrient
content or health claim is made for a menu item;
(7)about 75 percent of
adults report using food labels on packaged foods, which is associated with
eating more healthful diets, and approximately half of people report that the
nutrition information on food labels has caused them to change their minds
about buying a food product;
(8)it is difficult
for consumers to limit their intake of calories at restaurants, given the
limited availability of nutrition information;
(9)studies show that
consumers would like nutrition information to be provided at the time of
ordering their food at a restaurant, at the point of the sale, so as to enable
them to make an educated decision regarding what to order; and
(10)a
call to action from the Surgeon General and Secretary of Health and Human
Services recommends that, to reduce the incidence of obesity, there be
increased availability of nutrition information for foods eaten and prepared
away from home.
3.Nutrition
labeling of standard menu items at Chain RestaurantsSection 403(q)(5) of the
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
(21 U.S.C.
343(q)(5)) is amended—
(1)in clause
(A)—
(A)in subclause (i),
by inserting except as provided in clauses (H) and (I),
before
which
the first place it appears; and
(B)in subclause (ii),
by inserting except as provided in clauses (H) and (I),
before
which
the first place it appears; and
(2)by adding at the
end the following:
(H)Restaurants and retail food
establishments
(i)Except for
food described in subclause (iii), in the case of food that is served,
processed, or prepared in a restaurant or similar retail food establishment
that is part of a chain with 20 or more locations doing business under the same
trade name (regardless of the type of ownership of the locations), the
restaurant or establishment shall disclose the information described in
subclause (ii).
(ii)Information required to be
disclosedExcept as provided in subclause (iii), the
establishment shall disclose—
(I)- (aa)in a statement adjacent
to the name of the food on any menu listing the food for sale, or by any other
means deemed equivalent by the Secretary, the number of calories, grams of
saturated fat plus trans fat, and milligrams of sodium contained in a standard
serving of the food, as usually offered for sale, in a clear and conspicuous
manner; and
- (bb)information, specified by the
Secretary by regulation, designed to enable the public to understand, in the
context of a total daily diet, the significance of the nutrition information
that is provided; and
(II)in a statement adjacent to the
name of the food on any menu board or other sign listing the food for sale, or
by any other means deemed equivalent by the Secretary—
- (aa)the number of calories contained in a
serving of the food, as usually offered for sale, in a clear and conspicuous
manner; and
- (bb)notification that the information
required by subitems (aa) and (bb) of item (I) shall be provided in writing at
the request of a prospective purchaser.
(iii)Nonapplicability to certain
foodThis clause does not apply to—
(I)items that are not listed on a menu
or menu board (such as condiments and other items placed on the table or
counter for general use); or
(II)daily specials, temporary menu
items, or other irregular menu items, as specified by the Secretary by
regulation.
(iv)In the case of food sold at a salad bar, buffet line,
cafeteria line, or similar self-service facility, a restaurant or other
establishment shall place a sign that lists calories per standard serving
adjacent to each food offered.
(v)Voluntary provision of nutrition
information; state regulation of nutrition information for restaurant
food
(I)Retail food
establishmentsNothing in this clause precludes a restaurant or
similar retail food establishment from providing additional nutrition
information, voluntarily, if the information complies with the nutrition
labeling requirements contained in this subparagraph.
(II)State or local
requirementsNothing in this clause precludes a State or
political subdivision of a State from requiring that a restaurant or similar
food establishment provide nutrition information in addition to that required
under this clause.
(vi)
(I)Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this clause, the Secretary shall promulgate proposed regulations to carry out
this clause.
(II)The
regulations shall allow for the variations in serving sizes and in food
preparation that can reasonably be expected to result from inadvertent human
error, training of food service workers, and other factors.
(III)Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of
this clause, the Secretary shall promulgate final regulations to implement this
clause.
(IV)Failure to promulgate final
regulations by required dateIf the Secretary does not promulgate
final regulations under item (III) by the date that is 2 years after the date
of enactment of this clause—
- (aa)the proposed regulations issued in
accordance with item (I) shall become effective as the final regulations on the
day after that date; and
- (bb)the Secretary shall publish in the
Federal Register notice of the final regulations.
(I)
(i)In the case
of an article of food sold from a vending machine that—
(I)does not permit a prospective
purchaser to examine the article so as to be able to read a statement affixed
to the article before purchasing the article; and
(II)is operated by a person that is
engaged in the business of owning and operating 20 or more vending
machines;
the vending
machine operator shall provide a conspicuous sign in close proximity to the
article that includes a statement disclosing the number of calories contained
in the article.(ii)Voluntary provision of nutrition
information; state regulation of nutrition information for vending
machines
(I)Vending machine
operatorsNothing in this clause precludes a vending machine
operator from providing additional nutrition information, voluntarily, if the
information complies with the nutrition labeling requirements contained in this
subparagraph.
(II)State or local
requirementsNothing in this title precludes a State or political
subdivision of a State from requiring that a vending machine operator provide
nutrition information in addition to that required under this clause.
(iii)
(I)Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of
this clause, the Secretary shall promulgate proposed regulations to carry out
this clause.
(II)Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of
this clause, the Secretary shall promulgate final regulations to implement this
clause.
(III)Failure to promulgate final
regulations by required dateIf the Secretary does not promulgate
final regulations under item (II) by the date that is 2 years after the date of
enactment of this clause—
- (aa)the proposed regulations issued in
accordance with item (I) shall become effective as the final regulations on the
day after that date; and
- (bb)the Secretary shall publish in the
Federal Register notice of the final
regulations.
.