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Fat outlawed in Massachusetts town
At the stroke of midnight on New Year’s Eve, 2012, Chelsea, Massachusetts, a densely populated Boston surburb, became one of the most fat-free cities in America.
The National Restaurant Association reports that on January 1, 2013 the city enacted one of the strictest trans fats bans in the US.
This week, Chelsea begins implementing a complete ban on trans fats in both packaged and restaurant foods, a move that is far more restrictive than in most other parts of the country where trace amounts of the substance linked to heart disease are often allowed. Trans fats are made by adding hydrogen to vegetable oil, making the oil less likely to spoil. Trans fats increase bad cholesterol more than other types of fats.
The ban, approved by the Chelsea Board of Health last year means that all food service establishments must comply with the law. This includes hotel restaurants, coffee shops, cafeterias, cafes, luncheonettes, grills, delis, tea rooms, sandwich shops, bars, roadside stands and catering kitchens. Vending machines and mobile truck operators also are subject to compliance with the ban.
Vendors selling food items with trans fats in these locations are now subject to a fine of $100 for the first offense, $250 for the second offense and $500 for any further offenses. According to the regulation, fines to vendors cannot exceed $10,000 per location during a calendar year.
Chelsea, Massachusetts is not the only US city with a new food law on the books. In March, Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s controversial ban on 16 ounce-or-larger sugary sodas goes into effect in New York City, a move that will impact movie theatres, which regularly sell the jumbo-sized sodas.
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