The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said it is delaying the December 1, 2016 effective date for enforcement of the government’s menu labeling regulations.
The agency issued a statement indicating federal menu-labeling requirements will not be enforced until one year after the FDA publishes its final guidance on the rule.
The rule will require restaurants and similar retail food establishments with twenty(20) or more locations operating under the same name and serving substantially the same menu items to post calorie information. Also, guest will be provided additional nutrition information upon request.
The FDA issued draft guidance for affected businesses in September 2015. It is still analyzing the feedback and has not yet indicated when the final guidance will be available. FDA appreciates the extensive input received from stakeholders throughout the process of establishing requirements for menu labeling and in developing guidance. Chains and grocery stores that sell prepared foods and other covered businesses said they needed more time to redo their menu boards, retrain workers and update software.
Restaurants scrambling to comply with upcoming federal menu labeling requirements now have a little more breathing room.