H-4139              _______________________________________________

                                                   HOUSE BILL NO. 1998

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1986 Regular Session

By Representatives Addison, Wineberry and Miller

Read first time 1/24/86 and referred to Committee on Agriculture.

AN ACT Relating to the disclosure by restaurants of their use of certain kinds of substances or chemicals in the preparation of foods; adding a new section to chapter 43.20 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature finds that more than seven hundred thousand of our citizens die each year from heart attack and stroke, a greater number of deaths than is caused by any other illness; that research has identified saturated fats as a major cause contributing to heart disease and stroke; that public health officials and medical authorities have urged the general public to moderate their intake of saturated fats; that recent studies have shown that many restaurants, particularly fast food restaurants, use highly saturated fats, such as beef tallow, in the preparation of fried foods;  that many persons have allergic reactions to chemicals and substances used in the preparation of foods and these allergies can be life threatening in severity; that restaurants do not disclose in their menus or otherwise routinely disclose the kinds of fat and additives used in their foods; and that requiring such disclosure would enable consumers, particularly consumers with histories or family histories of heart disease, stroke, or allergies, to make more intelligent decisions with respect to the foods they consume, decisions more consistent with their long-term health.  Therefore, the legislature declares that the public health requires  that all restaurants disclose to consumers the kinds of fats and additives used in the preparation of foods.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 43.20 RCW to read as follows:

          The board of health shall adopt rules requiring restaurants to disclose in a conspicuous manner to prospective consumers the kind of fats and additives which they use in their food preparations.  The rules shall also prescribe the manner in which the disclosure is to be made and shall require the closing of any restaurant that fails to comply with the rules.  This closing shall last until such time as the restaurant complies with the rules.

          For purposes of this section:

          (1) "Restaurant" shall be construed broadly to mean any commercial food service establishment that prepares foods and sells the same, whether on or off the premises, for human consumption; and

          (2) "Additive" means any chemical or substance which the board believes a prospective consumer of restaurant foods, knowledgeable in diet health risks, would want to be disclosed in order for the consumer to make an intelligent decision with respect to his or her purchase of foods.  "Additive" also means any chemical or substance which is included in restaurant food and which the board believes should be disclosed in order to warn prospective consumers who have severe or life threatening allergies to the chemical or substance.