An Act To Increase Access to Nutrition Information . \ . ( )
Maine Legislature, Session 124, LD 1259
Committee: Health and Human Services
Sponsors: PINGREE, BRANNIGAN, JONES, MARTIN, MILLER, SANBORN, MARRACHE, MILLS
Amends: 22 MRSA §2491, 22 MRSA §2500-A

MAINE STATE LEGISLATURE 
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-124th MAINE LEGISLATURE 
FIRST PJ:GULAR SESSIO~~-2009 
Legislative Document 
No. 1259 
H.P.878 
House of Representatives, March 31, 2009 
An Act To Increase Access to Nutrition Information 
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Reference to the Committee on Health and Human Services suggested and ordered printed. 
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Presented by Speaker PINGREE ofNOlih Haven. 
Cosponsored by Senator BRANNIGAN of Cumberland and 
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1/1. 71!t1C;:j~{ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: JONES of Mount Vemon, MARTIN of Orono, MILLER of Somerville, 
PERRY ofCi.lais, RANK.IN of Hiram, SANBORN of Gorham, Senators: MARRACHE of 
Kennebec, MILLS of Somerset. 
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 22 M.RSA §2491, sub-§2-Ais enacted to read: 
2-A. Chain restaurant. "Chain restaurant" means an eating establishment that does 
business under the same trade name in 15 or more locations nationwide that offer 
predominantly the same type of meals, food, beverages or menus, regardless of the type 
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of ownership of an individual location. "Chain restaurant" does not include a grocery 
store. 
Sec. 2. 22 MRSA §2491, sub-§7-A is enacted to read: 
7-A. Food display tag. "Food display tag" means a written or printed description of 
a food or beverage item, such as a label or placard, placed in the vicinity of the food or 
. beverage item identifying the type or price of the food or beverage. 
Sec. 3. 22 MRSA .§2491, sub-§7~B is enacted to read: 
7-B. Grocery store. "Grocery store" means a store primarily engaged in the retail 
sale of canned food, dry goods, fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh meats, fish and poultry. 
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"Grocery store" includes a convenience store, but does not include a separately owned 
eating establishment located within a grocery store. 
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Sec. 4. 22 MRSA §2491, sub-§7-C is enacted to read: 
7-C. Menu. "Menu" means a written or printed list describing food or beverage 
items offered for sale at an eating establishment that may be distributed on or off the 
premises, but does not include a menu board. 
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Sec. 5. 22 MRSA §2491, sub-§7-D is enacted to read: 
7-D. Menu board. "Menu board" means a list of food or beverage items offered for 
sale at an eating establishment that is posted in a public area for viewing by multiple 
. customers, including a backlit marquee sign, chalkboard or drive-through menu sign. 
Sec. 6. 22 MRSA §2500-A.is enacted to read: 
§2S00-A. Menu labeling for chain restaurants 
1. Caloric information. A chain restaurant shall state on a food display tag, menu 
or menu board the total amount of calories per serving as usually prepared and offered for 
sale of each food and beverage item listed for sale on the food display tag, menu or menu 
board. The statement of calories required in this subsection must be: 
A. Clear and conspicuous; 
B. Adjacent to or in close proximity and clearly associated with the item to which the 
statement refers; and 
C. Printed in a font and format at least ·as prominent in size and appearance as the 
name or the price of the item to which the statement refers. 
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Infonnation required by this subsection must be based upon scientific methods, and the 
infonnation must be expressed in a marmer consistent with United States Food and Drug 
Administration regulations. 
A chain restaurant violates this subsection if the chain 
restaurant displays the infonnation required by this subsection if the amount of the 
calories listed for a food or beverage item varies more than 20% from the amount of 
calories found through a nutrient analysis of a representative sample of the food or 
beverage item. 
2. Required statement. A menu or menu board or written nutrition infonnation 
provided to a customer by a chain restaurant must contain the following statement in a 
clear and conspicuous marmer and in a prominent . location: 
"To maintain a healthy 
weight, a typical adult should consume approximately 2,000 calories per day; however, 
individual calorie needs may vary." A menu, menu board or written nutrition infonnation 
provided to a customer by a chain restaurant may include the following statement or a 
statement similar to the following: "Nutrition infonnation js based upon standard recipes 
and product fonnulations; however, modest variations may occur due to differences in 
preparation, serving sizes, ingredients or special orders." . 
3. Different varieties. For a food or beverage item that is listed as a single item but 
includes more than one variety, the caloric infonnation required under subsection 1 for 
that item must be the median value of calories for all varieties offered for that item if the 
caloric infonnation for each variety of the item is within 20% of the median for that item. 
If the caloric infonnation required by subsection 1 for a variety of a food or beverage 
item is not within 20% of the median for that item, then the caloric infonnation must be 
stated for each variety ofthat item. If a food display tag is used to identify a specific 
variety of a food or beverage item, the caloric infonnation required by subsection 1 must 
b.e for that specific variety of the item. 
4. Exceptions. A chain restaurant is not required to provide infonnation pursuant to 
subsection 1 for: 
A. An item offered for a limited time that appears on a menu, menu board or food 
display tag for less than 30 days per year; 
B. A condiment or other item offered toa customer for general use without charge; 
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An item sold to a customer in a manufacturer's original sealed package that 
contains nutrition infonnation as required by federal law; or 
D. A custom order for· a food or beverage item that does not appear on a menu, menu 
board or food display tag. 
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Enforcement. 
The department or an agent authorized to inspect an eating 
establishment under section 2499 shall enforce the provisions of this section but is not 
required to verify the accuracy of the infonnation required by this section. The Maine 
Center for Disease Control and Prevention may request that a franchisor or corporate 
owner of a chain restaurant provide documentation of the accuracy of the infonnation 
required by subsection 1. 
Sec. 7. Effective date. TIllS Act takes effect May 1, 2010. 
. SUMMARY 
This bill requires a chain restaurant, which is a restaurant with the same trade name 
and the same type of food, meals and menus as 15 or more restaurants nationwide, to 
provide accurate calorie information on its menus, menu boards and food display labels 
for the food and beverage items it regularly sells, mit including limited-time offers, 
condiments, items in sealed manufacturer's packaging with nutrition information or 
custom orders. 
The bill also requires a chain restaurant to state on its rrienu and menu 
boards: "To maintain a healthy weight, a typical adult should consume approximately 
2,000 calories per day; however, individual calorie needs may vary." This bill allows a 
chain restaurant to state on its menu and menu boards:· "Nutrition information is based 
upon standard recipes and product formulations; however, modest variations may occur 
due to differences in preparation, serving sizes, ingredients or special orders." 
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