For those wondering about the calories in corn dogs or the salt in soda at B.C. convenience stores, the answers are coming soon.
The Western Convenience Store Association has joined in on the province's Healthy Families B.C. initiative, and stores that belong to the association plan to provide nutritional information on unpackaged food products in the near future.
Health Minister Mike de Jong made the announcement Thursday, Aug. 11 at a Mac's convenience store in Burnaby.
"I applaud the association," de Jong said at the press conference at the Mac's at Production Way SkyTrain station.
"It isn't just good corporate citizenship, it's good business," he added.
The program is voluntary, and the association, not the government, is covering costs de Jong said.
The information is ideal for people who are on the go and stop in for a quick bite, he said.
The information could help customers make better nutritional choices, he added.
Mac's and 7-Eleven convenience stores have committed to the program, and plan to provide nutritional information as well as more nutritional food options, according to a Ministry of Health press release.
Stores throughout the province have signed on to the program, including Plus, Fas Gas Plus, PetroCanada, Husky, Mohawk and Mid Island Co-op stores.
Wayne Hoskins, president of the association, also spoke at the press conference.
"I guess the perception in the past was of convenience stores as purveyors of junk food at high prices," he said, adding stores have worked to change that, selling fruit and healthier options such as wraps.
Hoskins has lost 12 pounds over the past year, he added, something he partially attributed to reading information on packaging.
Nutritional information will be provided at store counters for those who want it, he said, and the association is looking into having something like a Rolodex with information cards in stores in the future.
Stores that participate will receive a healthy store designation from the association.
The announcement came just one day after the government announced health-care facilities would be required to provide nutritional information for their food, starting in the fall.
Restaurants were encouraged to do so as well through the province's Healthy Families B.C. Informed Dining program.
