1,000 eateries in Dubai now display calorie count on their menus

Reuters

Dubai - By the end of 2020, the number of outlets with such menus reached 1,000, including more than 80 well-known food establishments.

by Dhanusha Gokulan

Published: Thu 28 Jan 2021, 11:05 PM

At least 1,000 food establishments in Dubai have committed to declaring the calorie count of the meals they are serving, Khaleej Times has learnt.

The Dubai Municipality started the ‘Know Your Calorie’ initiative in 2019, instructing restaurants to include in their menues the calories in each of their dishes.

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By the end of 2020, the number of outlets with such menus reached 1,000, including more than 80 well-known food establishments.

These eateries had expressed their desire to voluntarily implement the initiative’s directives, a spokesperson from Dubai Municipality told KT.

“The calorie declaration initiative aims to enhance awareness on the nutritional value of diets taken by consumers in Dubai. The municipality continues to receive applications for the calorie declaration programme, as participation in the initiative is free of charge.”

To encourage more outlets to sign up for the programme, the municipality launched workshops for service staff and competitions for chefs.

“Recently, two workshops have been added on calorie calculation and how to build digital food menus using the food watch QR code. All these workshops were attended by 1,136 people,” the official added.

The municipality is now in the process of launching a campaign called ‘Know Your Calories’ for consumers, which targets different consumer groups, residents and visitors to Dubai, in order to help them make healthy food choices with high nutritional value.

dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com