Ethics Newsline®

Critics don’t like government control of what people eat and restaurant group says it will hurt mom-and-pop eateries, but advocates say the stuff is a public health menace

SACRAMENTO
In what proponents say is a victory for public health — and in what detractors charge is another symptom of an encroaching nanny state — California last week banned trans fats in the state’s restaurants and bakeries.

While some cities, such as New York, Philadelphia, and Seattle, have enacted similar bans, California is the first U.S. state to pass such a law, reports the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Trans unsaturated fats, shorthanded as trans fats, once were thought to be a healthy alternative to butter, but recent research shows they are much more harmful than once thought, significantly raising the risk of heart disease, reports ABC News.

Adding to the dilemma is the fact that the substances not only are tasty to many consumers but also have a long shelf life, making them attractive to restaurants and fast-food outlets.

The California Restaurant Association opposed the ban, saying it will impose an unfair burden on mom-and-pop restaurants and bakeries, notes the San Francisco Chronicle.

The ban will take effect January 1, 2010, according to Los Angeles TV station KABC. It will not apply to packaged foods sold in stores.

Sources: San Diego Union-Tribune, July 27 — San Francisco Chronicle, July 26 — ABC News, July 26 — KABC, Los Angeles, July 16.

For more information, see: Related Newsline story, Nov. 5, 2007 — Related Newsline story, Aug. 13, 2007 — Related Newsline story, June 18, 2007 — Related Newsline story, Feb. 5, 2007 — Related Newsline story, Dec. 11, 2006.