Calorie-Counting Rule to Leave Out Movie Theaters

The federal government on Friday released proposed rules requiring chain restaurants and other businesses that serve food to post calorie counts on menus and menu boards. But after objections from theater chains, the rules give a pass to those box-office snacks  although a giant popcorn and soda can contain as lots of calories as a typical person needs in a day.

Movie theaters don't hesitate to wag a stern finger at their patrons: Shhh! Turn off your cell phone. Don't talk in the work of the film. But don't ask them to tell you how lots of calories are in that jumbo tub of popcorn.

The new disclosure rules also exempt alcoholic drinks served in restaurants, including beer, wine and high-calorie mixed drinks like margaritas and daiquiris.

The Food and Drug Administration said it would accept consumer and industry feedback on the rules before finishing them, hopefully by the finish of this year. They are expected to go in to effect some time next year, said Michael R. Taylor, deputy commissioner for foods at the F.D.A.

This is an important and positive step in providing consumers information that they can use to select healthy diets and fight obesity, Mr. Taylor said.

The health care overhaul law passed last year included a provision that necessary chain restaurants and similar establishments that served food at 20 or more locations to display calorie counts for menu items.

The proposed new rules, which would spell out how the law would be applied, would take the place of a grab bag of menu-labeling laws that exist already around the country, including in New York City and Los angeles. The restaurant industry supported a federal labeling rule so that it would not must comply with a range of different regulations.

A preliminary F.D.A. document on the rules released last summer would have included film theaters.

But Mr. Taylor said officials decided to write the rules so that they would apply only to establishments whose primary purpose was to sell food or where at least half the floor space was dedicated to food sales.

The thinking has absolutely evolved based on comments we've gotten from various quarters, Mr. Taylor said. This is a different drawing of the circle of what is covered by this law.

Under the change, the law also would not apply to bowling alleys, carnivals, airplanes and other establishments where the primary purpose was not the sale of food.

But it would cover convenience stores and supermarkets that offer ready-to-eat items like hot canines, deli sandwiches or rotisserie chicken, as long as they were part of a chain of sufficient size. In such establishments and in restaurants, each item on a salad bar would must be labelled to show how lots of calories were in a serving.

Mr. Taylor said the rules would not cover alcohol sold in restaurants because the F.D.A. did not have jurisdiction to regulate alcohol.

In a separate proceeding, the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau is thinking about whether to need nutritional information on the labels of alcoholic drinks.

It doesn't matter whether you happen to be watching a film while you're eating,Ms. Wootan said. Those calories still count.

Margo G. Wootan, director of nutrition owner of the Middle for Science in the Public Interest, said leaving out film theaters from the new rules was a mistake.

The F.D.A. also issued proposed rules for calorie labeling on vending machines, which was also necessary by the health care law. Under the rules, vending machine operators with 20 or more machines would must post the calorie content of items they sell.

The middle, an advocacy group, has issued reports showing that at some theaters, a giant tub of popcorn with butter topping can contain  1,500 calories. A giant soda can contain 500 calories. Federal dietary guidelines say that the average person needs about 2,000 calories a day. However, Ms. Wootan said that over all, calorie labeling on menus would help people make healthier choices when they go out to eat, and they was pleased to see that the F.D.A. was moving comparatively quickly to put the rules in place.

The federal rules would take the place of local or state laws for chain restaurants and other establishments covered by the federal regulations. But local governments would be free to generate laws for establishments that were left outside the federal rules. New York City's labeling law already requires film theater chains to post calorie information. It also requires calorie labeling for alcoholic drinks listed on menus at restaurant chains.

The National Association of Theater Owners, a trade group, had called for film theaters to be exempt from the menu labeling law. On its Web-site, the group said that movies were escapist entertainment and that moviegoers did not go there with the intent of eating a meal. A representative of the group could not be reached on Friday.