Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Nutrition Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council hears testimony supporting red text warnings for high‑sodium and high‑sugar menu items
Summary
At a Health Committee hearing, sponsors and public health groups urged the council to require chain restaurants to display clear, red‑text warning labels for high‑sodium and high‑added‑sugar menu items; DOH staff raised accessibility and design concerns and AHA recommended a lower sodium threshold.
City Council members and public health advocates urged passage of two bills on March 2, 2026, that would require chain restaurants to display prominent warnings for menu items with high sodium or added sugars.
Council Member Feliz, sponsor of Intro 196A and Intro 547, told the committee the proposals would require a red triangular symbol and the words “HIGH SODIUM” (or “HIGH SUGAR”) in bold, capital red letters next to menu items meeting specified thresholds and argued that “New Yorkers deserve to know what they are consuming.” He tied the bills to broader Healthy NYC initiatives aimed at reducing chronic disease.
Advocates and clinicians offered support. Danielle Cohen, executive director of SNAP‑based food education nonprofit Snack, said: “Warning labels that are easy to understand restore transparency at the point when it matters most, the point of purchase.” The American Heart Association recommended the policy but urged lowering the sodium trigger from 1,800 milligrams to 1,500 milligrams to better align with cardiovascular guidance.
DOH and technical concerns: DOH witnesses expressed broad support for the policy goals but raised design and accessibility questions. A DOH official warned that red text can be harder to read for people with certain types of color‑vision deficiency and said the agency prefers to collaborate on the final iconography and communications plan. DOH staff noted the department previously led New York’s first‑in‑the‑nation sodium warning and said the agency would use its rulemaking and communications experience to refine implementation.
Enforcement and platforms: Public commenters asked the council to consider enforcement on delivery platforms and apps (DoorDash, Grubhub, etc.), arguing menu warnings must also appear in digital ordering interfaces; DOH said it will continue conversations about practical implementation and enforcement across channels.
Next steps: Committee members asked DOH to meet with sponsors to refine language and asked for continued stakeholder engagement on visual design, thresholds and accessibility. No votes were taken; sponsors and agency staff said they would continue refining the bills through follow‑up meetings.
