Nutrition Trends and the Food Service Industry Response

Introduction

The food service industry has long relied on meeting customer needs, particularly with respect to taste and speed of service. However, as tastes change and new trends emerge, the industry must adapt. One of the major trends today is the growing emphasis on nutrition. This shift manifests in a number of ways. One example is the emphasis on nutrition in school lunches, which not only affects institutional food providers but has also extended guidelines to the private restaurant industry (Jones, 2012). These guidelines will change the eating habits of the next generation, making improved nutrition a long-term trend for the industry to address. In addition, regulators have taken aim at trans fats and other food additives known to produce negative health outcomes (Park, 2012). This paper explores the issue of nutrition and food service, and the response of the industry to this evolving challenge.

Background of the Issue

The United States is one of the most obese nations in the world. A combination of wealth and sedentary lifestyles has led to widespread obesity in American society, with 35.7% of American adults classified as obese and 16.9% of children as well. The latter figure is particularly alarming, as children have not historically suffered from obesity at such rates. When an individual becomes obese early in life, their chances of ever achieving a healthy weight are significantly reduced. Obesity is strongly associated with adverse health outcomes, and there is considerable concern about its impact on children, especially since children often have little control over what they eat. Some sources have predicted that obesity in America will reach 44% by 2030 (Begley, 2012).

There are numerous serious health consequences associated with obesity, including Type 2 diabetes, endometrial cancer, heart disease, and a range of lower-level illnesses (Begley, 2012). For a long time, American social norms — which hold that individuals have the freedom to make their own lifestyle choices — allowed the problem to go largely unaddressed. However, several factors have brought obesity to the forefront of public debate.

The first is rising medical costs. Obese individuals get sick more often and tend to have more serious illnesses, which increases health care costs for everyone, as insurance premiums rise across the board when overall health care usage increases. More significantly, when the government is covering the bill through programs such as Medicare and Medicaid, taxpayers are effectively paying to manage the health consequences of choices made by others. This creates both a financial and a moral imperative for government to raise awareness about obesity and address its root causes.

A sharp increase in childhood obesity has further intensified concern. If an adult chooses a lifestyle that results in obesity, many would argue that is their personal decision. Children, however, do not generally possess the knowledge to make informed dietary choices, and as a result many are becoming permanently obese before they have a meaningful say in the matter. This is a societal concern given the lifelong setbacks these individuals may face.

If government had not entered the conversation, nutrition might have remained purely a business decision for food service companies — some restaurants would adapt to consumer trends toward healthy eating, and some would not. However, government involvement — including trans fat bans, proposals to limit salt use, and regulation of school lunches — has created strong motivation for the industry to play a role in curbing obesity. It is widely recognized that the food service industry contributed to the obesity epidemic. While the industry is correct to note that it is not the only factor, there is little doubt that high-calorie meals and snacks with little nutritional value, available virtually anywhere at any time, are contributing to the problem. Furthermore, politicians are more likely to target the food industry than to address other contributing factors, such as physical inactivity or car-centric community design, because doing so would mean lecturing individual consumers or criticizing land use decisions that most constituents accept. Because the restaurant industry is an easier political target, it must either address its contribution head-on or find effective ways to manage the scrutiny.

Works Cited

Begley, S. (2012). Fat and fatter: U.S. obesity rates to soar by 2030. Reuters. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/09/18/us-obesity-us-idUSBRE88H0RA20120918

Jones, J. (2012). Michelle Obama announces new school lunch nutrition guidelines. BET. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from http://www.bet.com/news/national/2012/01/25/michelle-obama-announces-new-school-lunch-nutrition-guidelines.html

Kelso, A. (2012). Restaurant industry's 2012 trends shaped by demographics, nutrition. Fast Casual. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from

Park, A. (2012). NYC's trans fat ban worked: Fast food diners are eating healthier. Time Magazine. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from

QSR Web. (2012). NY McDonald's restaurants launch grassroots nutrition initiative. QSR Web. Retrieved November 22, 2012, from