Adding Calorie Counts to Fast Food Menus

By Jon Jordan, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Lawmakers concerned about Americans' waistlines want restaurants like Oklahoma City based Sonic to serve up more clarity about their food. New legislation, known as the MEAL Act, could force fast food chains with 20 or more restaurants to provide more information about the food you're eating.

For example, when you go to McDonalds, on the menu board where you order your food, you could also see how many calories are in each item. But the idea is not sitting well with some fast food chains.

At almost any fast food chain you go to, their menu boards are decorated with all kinds of food from different drinks to different portions it's all there, but what isn't on those boards is what's in the food.

"The consumer needs to be totally aware of what they're eating," said Anastasia Chehak, a registered dietician.

Chehak is concerned with what places like Sonic and McDonalds are serving up.

"A meal, a hamburger meal with fries and with some coke, a soda, may come out that you are eating eight servings of starch in one meal, that's a lot," Chehak said.

Which is why she supports the MEAL Act requiring fast food chains with 20 or more restaurants to provide calorie information on their menu boards, something Sonic says can already be found on their website.

"On our website SonicDriveIn.com have what we call a nutritional wizard and you can go in there and make up the food the way you want it and get the nutritional value," Vice President of Sonic Communications Nancy Robertson said.

Taco Mayo agrees with Sonic and goes even further calling the bill unfair and issued this statement:

"With the restriction of 20 or more units, however will leave a huge gap of restaurants, many independents and small chains, most of whom will not be required to meet these new labeling requirements."

Until they have to put calorie information on their menu boards, Sonic said it will continue to look at ways to add more healthy solutions.

"We work hard and will continue to work hard on having alternative choices for our customers," Robertson said.

Instead of the MEAL Act, fast food chains are pushing for the LEAN Act, a bill they argue will still offer calorie counts to their customers. The key difference, fast food restaurants would not be forced to list the calories on the menu boards.