News Summary: FDA head says menu labeling 'thorny'
FDA head says menu calorie labeling 'thorny' issue as supermarkets lobby to be exempted
DELAYED RULE: Diners will have to wait a little longer to find calorie counts on most restaurant chain menus, in supermarkets and on vending machines. Writing a new menu labeling law "has gotten extremely thorny," says Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Margaret Hamburg.
THE LAW: The 2010 health care law charged the FDA with requiring chain restaurants and other establishments that serve food to put calorie counts on menus and in vending machines.
THE LOBBYING: While the restaurant industry has signed on to the idea and helped to write proposed regulations, supermarkets, convenience stores and other retailers that sell prepared food say they want no part of it.
