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Restaurants & Institutions - Will QSRs Become the More-Healthful Alternative? |
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07/24/2009 |
If and when a federal menu-labeling law is implemented, the big restaurant chains will likely see lots of articles focused on their menu items' caloric content (not to mention the items' saturated-fat, carbohydrate and sodium counts!). The longer-term impact of the labeling law is more difficult to forecast. Consumer research told us that customers wanted nutrition information. However, even though people tend to say they want more information, they don’t necessarily change their behaviors once they have it. There are some indications that in New York City, where calorie counts have been on menus for about a year, the most consumers have drifted back to their pre-menu-labeling eating habits. We do have short attention spans.The impact nutritional labeling will have on casual-dining restaurants is something of a wild card. Could it make quick-service restaurants look like the more-healthful alternative? Surf around to find some of the casual-dining nutrition information on the Web. Keep in mind that the suggested adult caloric intake for a full day is somewhere around 2,000 (variable based on a host of factors). Here are a few casual-dining entree examples: shrimp with pasta, 2,285 calories; a classic Monte Cristo sandwich, 1,966 calories; and spaghetti and meatballs with Bolognese sauce, 1,810 calories. A piece of cheesecake or tiramisu for dessert could add 1,000 calories. In comparison, a quarter-pound cheeseburger has about 500-600 calories.
Some customers will likely go into caloric “sticker shock” when they find out the counts for their favorite items. To be sure, the large—sometimes enormous—portion sizes of many casual-dining entrees are a primary factor in the items' high calorie counts. But even if you take home half the food for tomorrow's lunch or dinner, each half-portion still packs a lot of calories for a single meal.Casual-dining restaurants will need to adjust their menus and keep a careful eye on guest reactions to the in-your-face calorie information. There's no doubt that menu and portion-size adjustments are already under way. The good news? A federal law will prevent the horror of a nationwide patchwork of city and state laws.
http://www.rimag.com/blog/1800000580/post/140047014.html |
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