State Senate Bill 81 Could Save Your Life

Thanks to federal government regulations I can go to a supermarket and examine how many calories, grams of saturated fat and carbohydrates, and milligrams of sodium a food product has before I purchase it. In other words, I can engage in comparison shopping because of government regulations. I can't engage in that kind of comparison shopping among restaurants in Delaware, especially among chain restaurants.

State Senate Bill 81 would address that problem. The principal sponsors of state SB 81 are state Senator David Sokola and state Representative John Kowalko. Their bill would require chain restaurants (defined as "retail food establishment…that does business under the same trade name as used by ten…or more other establishments doing business in Delaware or nationally….") to provide information to consumers about "[t]he total number of calories (rounded to the nearest ten calories), grams of saturated fat, grams of carbohydrates and milligrams of sodium, per menu item as offered for sale."

Because SB81 will allow consumers to engage in comparison shopping, it also should spur competition among restaurants to offer healthier foods. That makes SB 81 a win-win for consumers. It deserves our support.