The Restaurants Association of Ireland has once again hit out at the proposed mandatory calorie information on restaurant menus.
The proposal, brought in by the Government's Health & Wellbeing Bill Act, has provoked widespread criticism from the hospitality sector, with RAI chief Adrian Cummins calling it the “Irish Water for the Irish food industry”.
According to the Journal.ie, Cummins believes that “no creativity is being allowed for chefs”, who often change menus on a daily basis according to what is available or is in season. The changes will cost a restaurant an average of €5,000-€10,000 a year, it says.
In a statement, the representative body said it is behind the Government in tackling the obesity problem in Ireland, however it doesn't believe that calorie information is an effective strategy in this regard.
The Irish Hotels Federation has also been vocal on the matter, saying the measures will "stifle creativity" for a lot of restaurants who are "not part of the underlying health issue".
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland recently announced a national consultation on the matter, asking people in the industry to answer a questionnaire on its website.
