MIRIAM WANTS NUTRITIONAL CONTENT INCLUDED IN FOOD MENUS

Sen. Miriam Defensor Santiago proposed a law that would require fast food chains, restaurants, and other food service establishments to post the nutritional content of their menu items in their stores.

"At present, consumers are unable to make informed choices as to which menu item is more nutritious as opposed to others in food service establishments, leading to unhealthy eating patterns," Santiago said.

Senate Bill No. 2682, also known as Nutritional Content in Menu Boards Act, aims to increase awareness of the consumers when eating out.

Santiago said that putting calorie and nutrient information on menu and menu boards fulfills the Constitutional mandate for the state to protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them.

"Nutrient content information provided at the time of food selection in food service establishments would enable consumers to make more informed, healthier choices and can reasonably be expected to reduce the many related health problems uninformed choices make," she said.

Santiago's bill requires menu boards and menus in food service establishment to conspicuously contain the caloric and nutrient content in each serving size or other unit of measurement of the food such as total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, sugars, dietary fiber, total protein, and any vitamin or mineral.

The proposed law also mandates the Department of Health to issue compliance certificate, renewable every three years, to food service establishments.