Evaluation of the uptake of voluntary calorie posting on menus in Ireland

This report was commissioned by the Department of Health, Ireland. Obesity is a public health problem in Ireland which is largely responsible for the increasing prevalence of diet-related diseases and growing financial burden on our healthcare system. Although overweight and obesity rates may have reached a plateau in Irish adults and children, they remain at an extremely high level as 1 in 4 children areoverweight or obese and an estimated 61% of adults are overweight or obese. Urgent public health action is required to reduce the levels of obesity among our children and adults. A sustainable national intervention strategy that combines government and community-led interventions is required. These interventions need to incorporate both nutrition education and environmental modification strategies to reduce levels of obesity. International literature suggests that calorie posting has the potential to have a positive effect on the obesity crisis by encouraging people to make healthier food choices through informed consumer decisions. This evaluation focuses on the uptake of voluntary calorie posting from a national representative sample of food service businesses in Ireland and explores the attitudes of food service businesses that do and do not display calories. This evaluation will explore the most effective and efficient way of implementing mandatory calorie posting on menus in Ireland.