New York City Bans Trans Fats

NEW YORK - The New York City Board of Health yesterday voted unanimously to ban trans fats in the city‘s more than 22,000 restaurants, making New York the first major U.S. city to enact such a ban. The city‘s restaurant owners will be required to discontinue use of any frying oils containing trans fats by July 2007, and will be prohibited from serving any foods containing added trans fats -- such as many pre-breaded or pre-cooked items -- by July 2008. The city‘s chapter of the New York State Restaurant Association has complained that the ban will be difficult for many small restaurant owners to comply with. However, a broader movement to eliminate the artery clogging fats in restaurant foods has been under way since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration began requiring trans fat content to appear on packaged food labels early this year. Many national chains, including fast food giants such as McDonald‘s, Wendy‘s, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Taco Bell, have separately announced plans to discontinue use of trans fats, and have said that they will be ready in time for New York‘s ban.