Quezon City government to require restaurants to include calorie counts on menus
You can soon easily track your calories when you dine in at any food establishments in Quezon City.
Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte has signed an ordinance that requires restaurants fast food chains, and other food establishments operating within the city to include the calorie counts of the food items on their menu.
According to Belmonte, this initiative aims to help QCitizens to make informed food choices.
“Nais nating maging ligtas ang ating QCitizens sa non-communicable diseases. Kapag may calorie labeling, may kapangyarihan ang QCitizen na pumili ng masustansyang pagkain dahil hawak nila ang tamang impormasyon,” she said during a media briefing on Thursday, March 21.
While the new ordinance exempts barangay micro businesses and micro, small, and medium enterprises like ambulant vendors and carinderias from following suit, Belmonte assured that they can be given incentives should they voluntarily put calorie counts on their menus.
As per the data from the QC Health Department, nearly 1 in 5 adults of its residents have high blood pressure. 19.9% of school-age children and 43.0% of adults were also found to be overweight and obese in 2018.
The new ordinance will run in phases. In its first year, it will take effect in restaurants that are part of a food chain or franchise with five or more branches in the country.
In the second year, restaurants with two or more branches are expected to follow suit, and in its third year, all restaurants and food businesses are expected to implement the new rule.
Atty. Sophia San Luis of the public interest law group ImagineLaw commended the Quezon City LGU for their “groundbreaking initiative.”
“This is the first of its kind in the country and as a pioneer in calorie-labeling, we hope that QC inspires more cities and municipalities to do the same,” said Atty. San Luis.