What You Need to Know About the New Menu Labelling Laws in the UK
The UK Government is implementing a new law for businesses selling food outside of the home. Starting in April 2022, the government has announced mandatory calorie labelling among large food businesses (businesses with 250 or more employees) in the out-of-home sector. This legislation aims to improve overall public health amongst UK citizens by reducing obesity rates.
For food businesses, preparing to meet the legislation can be daunting. Food businesses affected will include restaurants, cafes, takeaways, supermarkets, home delivery services, department stores, entertainment venues (such as cinemas), delicatessens, sweet shops, bakeries, catering, and domestic transport businesses such as planes, trains, and ferries.
Menu Labelling Essentials
When it comes to adding calories to menus, there are a few key guidelines to adhere to.
- The Energy content information must be presented at the point of sale. This means that calories should be placed on each menu item either on menu boards, online menus, or food labels. Typically, the calories are placed near the name of the dish or the price (see examples below).
- Energy content should be displayed as kcal
- The Energy content of a single portion of the food should be displayed. If the item has been prepared to be consumed by more than one person, the Energy content of the whole item should be displayed.
- Calorie information must be given per portion (for example per item, per scoop) and not per 100g or 100ml.
- Businesses are allowed a plus or minus 20% allowance on accuracy. It is recommended for businesses to keep records to explain to enforcement officers how calorie information has been calculated for recipes.
- The penalty for non-compliance is a fixed monetary fine of £2,500
Example Menu with calories after the price.
Example Menu with calories after name of the dish.
