NEW YORK and ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- New York City has settled a lawsuit seeking to block the city’s efforts to enforce U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) menu-labeling regulations before the May 7, 2018, compliance deadline.
In July, NACS and other retail and restaurant groups asked the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York to stop the city from levying fines against noncompliant retailers and restaurants starting Aug. 21. The settlement now ensures that menu-labeling enforcement will be delayed in New York City until the federal rules are ready.
“This settlement with New York City is a clear victory for common sense. States and cities cannot enforce menu-labeling rules until Food and Drug Administration rules are enforced. We’re pleased that New York City has agreed not to jump the gun,” said Lyle Beckwith, senior vice president of government affairs for Alexandria, Va.-based NACS.
“There are good reasons for everyone to wait: It is increasingly clear that the federal regulations have real problems that must be fixed before they go into effect,” Beckwith said. “A recent economic study confirmed that total costs for the industry under the rule will be more than triple the FDA estimate, reaching more than $300 million per year—and seven times the estimate for convenience stores. And no matter how much businesses spend to comply with the FDA’s rule, routine calorie-count variations would result in 93% of prepared foods being in violation of the rules.
“NACS members and other businesses will need to comply with the federal and city rules once they properly take effect," he continued. "NACS urges its members to become educated on those rules and work to come into compliance. NACS will continue to battle for common-sense changes to the federal regulations through the regulatory and legislative process, so that the rules ensure NACS members can provide nutrition information to their customers in a way that makes sense for everyone.”
James Calvin, president of the New York Association of Convenience Stores (NYACS), said, “We’re relieved that common sense prevailed here. The attempt to prematurely implement this rule was clearly a governmental overreach by the city of New York.”
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