Darden Restaurants to Reduce Calories, Sodium

ORLANDO, Fla.Darden Restaurants, whose brands include Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse and Bahama Breeze, today announced its commitment to reduce its calorie and sodium footprints and provide greater choice and variety on its children's menus.

"Today we are taking a new step forward by creating a comprehensive health and wellness commitment, while preserving our commitment to offer our guests the delicious food they have come to know and love from their favorite Darden restaurants," said Drew Madsen, President and Chief Operating Officer of Darden Restaurants, who was joined by First Lady Michelle Obama and the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) to announce its commitment. "The First Lady continues to lead the growing national efforts to make healthy food options more available and accessible, and we're pleased to collaborate with her and the Partnership for a Healthier America on this commitment."

The initiative will reduce its overall calorie footprint across its entire portfolio of brands by 10% over five years and 20% over 10 years. The company will look at reformulating, resizing and removing certain items, and introducing new calorie-conscious, flavorful choices. Darden will work in partnership with its suppliers to secure this commitment in a "transition-over-time" approach that aligns with national nutrition policy and allows for the evolution of consumer taste preferences as well as needed market innovations.

The company also is establishing specific nutrition standards to guide the development of its children's meals to that include offering fruits or vegetables as the default side dish options and an 8-ounce service of 1% milk as the default beverage with free refills.

This initiative builds on the success of the First Lady's "Let's Move!" campaign to offer healthier options for families dining out. Some of the changes have already been made to children's menus available in restaurants today, including the introduction of six new children's meals that meet nutrition standards consistent with USDA Dietary Guidelines.