The NYC Board's vote includes all chain restaurants with 15 or more outlets, which amounts to approximately 10 percent of all New York City's dining establishments. The new requirements go into effect on March 31.
The New York Restaurant Association unsuccessfully tried to sue the Board of Health for violating First Amendment rights, but after months of litigation, a revised form of the new rule was written and subsequently passed by the city. The city's Restaurant Association said they are still "considering options, including pursuing further litigation against the city."
The new-caloric display proposal is designed to combat the growing obesity problem in both New York City and beyond. With some 54 % of adults in New York City overweight or obese, the Dept of Health is arguing the new regulation will help New Yorkers make "healthier choices about what to eat; living longer, healthier lives as a result."
However, not all New Yorkers are buying into the theory. Chuck Hunt, spokesman for the New York State Restaurant Association, which had previously challenged the ruling in court, called the new law "cumbersome," adding that similar federal regulations designed to reduce obesity by listing calorie content on food in supermarkets has also done little to eliminate the growing obesity problem in America.
