It looks like residents of New York City will no longer be able to delude themselves about the potential damage a Big Mac will do to their waistlines. A federal judge today upheld New York City’s requirement that fast-food joints disclose calorie information on their menus. The city’s restaurants had sued over the measure, arguing that somehow providing the information violated their free speech rights, and if not that, the city’s regulation was preempted by federal law, which doesn’t require any such thing. Judge Richard Hollwell was having none of that, and found that while the calorie listings (Double Whopper w/cheese: 990 calories) might not end the obesity epidemic, it might help a few people lose a few pounds, which was, he thought, a worthy public goal. The decision paves the way for other cities to follow suit.
