There were several hidden gems in the 2010 Obamacare Act. I think we’ve all seen how our premiums have taken off, or the fact that our doctors were smart and either went into concierge medicine or stopped accepting your crappy insurance. But now, it seems like the wizards of wellness that were released with this monstrosity want to regulate your pizza.
Yep. On May 7th all businesses that sell food and have 20 or more locations to post calories in a place where their customers can see them. The FDA thinks it’s a great idea for these calories to be put on the walls of the establishment.
Why? Why do businesses have to go to all this trouble and expense to post the nutrition info on their delicious, affordable food? Because the nanny state demands it. You see, the nanny state wants to nudge you into different behaviors. Therefore, if the nutrition information is posted on the wall, you might see that the #2 Combo at Whataburger will probably take up most of your caloric intake for the day. If you have that info, the nanny staters say, you will make healthier choices. Because you’re fat and too stupid to realize that eating that double meat double cheese with bacon and extra large fries is causing you to be fat.
The regulation requires that the nutrition info be posted in stores, which is problematic for at least one major category of fast food—pizza.
Think about it—Domino’s estimates that there are 34 MILLION different combinations available to their customers. The government wants the person who walks into the Domino’s store to be able to see EXACTLY how many calories their 16 inch hand tossed crust with extra sauce, four kinds of cheese, green peppers, olives, and every meat known to a delicatessen will set them back. That kind of info has to be posted for every combination. In the store.
But, the FDA is refusing to look at reality here. According to one Domino’s franchisee who owns 18 stores, 90% of his customers don’t come into his store at all. They either order on-line, through the app, or occasionally call. They. Do. Not. Come. In. The. Store. So, they won’t have access to all this nanny state goodness.
Well, actually, the on-line and app orderers do know exactly how many calories their pies contain. You see Domino’s developed an application (on its own without the government telling it what to do) that will give you the per slice calorie count of the pizza you’re building right there at the time of purchase. I’ve actually found it a useful thing.
Occasionally, I like to eat pizza, and Domino’s has a not-hateful gluten free crust. Done right, pizza is not unhealthy. If I feel particularly virtuous, I know that my 12 inch gluten-free crust with sauce, Canadian, bacon, and vegetables comes in at around 100 calories a slice. If I am feeling like I could eat the Empire State building, I don’t care that my 16-inch hand tossed with extra everything will set me back about 400 calories a slice. But I only know that info because Domino’s helpfully provides it to me as I am building my pizza on-line.
But that’s not good enough for the FDA. That info has to be posted in-store. And according to Jim Gerety, the aforementioned Domino’s franchisee, this will cost about $5000 per store. In Jim’s case, he will be forced to spend $90 grand on something that won’t reach more than 10% of his customers, and that his on-line customers actually already get.
This regulation also has real teeth in it. You see, your friendly Domino’s store owner and pizza slinger can be hit with some serious civil and criminal penalties if they don’t comply. This regulation says that the employees and owners of the business can face fines up to $100,000 and/or a year in jail if they inadvertently mess up and give you extra cheese.
Holy Stromboli! $100,000 and/or a year in the pokey as Bubba’s girlfriend if they get heavy-handed with the old mozzarella!
This is the problem with allowing government agencies run by unaccountable bureaucrats to make the rules. Sure, they think it’s in your best interest to have all the possible information you can have in order to make “better choices”. But, they don’t consider either the realities of business (90% of customers already see this info, but you still have to spend $5000 per store to show off your calorie counts), or the ultimate costs.
In what normal world would you send someone to jail for giving you extra cheese on your pie? I’d say that’s more like Venezuela, but the government’s screwed up their economy so bad they don’t even have cheese, much less pepperoni. And the average citizen has already dropped about 20 or 30 pounds.
And maybe that’s the real plan all along…