Mitchells & Butlers (M&B), the managed pub and restaurant group, is claiming a UK first for a nation-wide operator by including calorie counts on menus across its Harvester brand.
Calorie information will be printed on menus for individual dishes including starters, mains, sauces, sides and desserts.
The details will also be available on-line via http://nutrition.harvester.co.uk/nutrition/ and a free iPhone application is due to be released in the coming weeks.
M&B marketing and strategy director Adam Martin said: “Harvester has printed calorie information on menus in an unobtrusive manner.
"This will provide important information to customers dining with us regularly without detracting from the eating-out experience of customers enjoying a treat.
"How this information is used and what affect it has is down to the individual, but we recognise there is a growing appetite for calorie information and we’re utilising our menu format and technology to help deliver it in an innovative way.”
Alex Meyer, senior marketing manager for Harvester, said: “Our research and menu trials demonstrated that the vast majority of Harvester customers support the decision to print calorie information on menus whether it is of personal interest to them or not.
"The key aspect to this initiative has been the design and delivery of our Salad & Grill concept as it enabled us to provide individual calorie values item by item, making the information practical and usable for customers.”
As part of M&B's strategy to expand into retail parks and the high street, the company has recently opened new-format Harvesters in the high street in Staines, Surrey, on a retail park in Bristol, and at the 02 Arena.
Trials of takeaways and breakfast offers at Harvester are also underway.
Meyer said: “Harvester is expanding in highly-competitive locations and catering for a broader spectrum of eating-out occasions including breakfast, lunch, evening meals and takeaway.
"Providing calorie information on menus and developing our innovative calorie counter and iPhone app provide further reasons for people to visit Harvester.”
