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FDA Eyes Restaurants in Obesity Fight

BETHESDA, Md. (Reuters) - As Americans grow fatter, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) is weighing whether to enlist restaurants in its battle against the bulge by requiring them to post the nutritional content of their meals.

"We Americans are increasingly super-sizing ourselves and our nation," said Health and Human Services (news - web sites) Secretary Tommy Thompson in a video message to an FDA public hearing on obesity. "Unfortunately, this trend continues to grow."

The FDA is brainstorming for ideas to combat the trend toward obesity that it blames for 300,000 deaths a year and $117 billion in increased medical costs and lost productivity.

Restaurants were exempted from a 1994 requirement for nutritional labeling on packaged foods and deputy FDA commissioner Lester Crawford said it was too soon to say whether the agency would change that.

Calming fears that a candlelight dinner will one day be spoiled by a menu listing for the fat content of the foie gras appetizer, Crawford said: "I think that might be unrealistic."

FDA Commissioner Mark McClellan told the meeting that other options, including easing development hurdles for new obesity drugs and devices, were also being considered. An agency working group's recommendations will be issued in February.

Some fast food restaurants like McDonald's and Wendy's, already offer nutritional data through Web sites or on food tray liners.

"People need good, clear information about the nutritional value of their foods," McClellan he said. "They also need to be protected from misleading information."

The National Restaurant Association said it would be open to discussing voluntary measures, but is adamantly against mandatory labeling.

"We're not a can, we're not a box -- you can't stick a label on restaurant food," said Allison Whitesides, director of legislative affairs for the 870,000-member trade group.