UNITE HERE launches "No Bon Pain," a consumer education campaign

NEW YORK, Dec. 18, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, UNITE HERE launched a campaign that compares the nutrition data for Au Bon Pain's products with Au Bon Pain's brand promise that it provides "healthful" food and beverages. Au Bon Pain has marketed itself as a healthy alternative, but some of ABP's popular menu items are not as healthy as they sound.

Au Bon Pain's menu contains items that are no better than what you might find at fast food restaurants such as McDonald's. This may be a particular concern for holiday travelers, given the brand's presence in airports and train stations. Au Bon Pain also operates in hospitals, such as those in NYC where increasing demands to provide healthy food have led to voluntary standards, some of which Au Bon Pain fails. 

Here are some more facts:

• All of Au Bon Pain's lunch and dinner "hot sandwiches" contain more calories than a McDonald's Big Mac.
• 8 out of 11 croissants and croisbuns have more saturated fat than a Big Mac.
• At Bellevue, 42 of 46 (8 oz.) soups on ABP's online menu have more than 480mg of sodium.  The "NYC Voluntary Standards for Hospital Cafeterias" specify that no soups should have more than that amount.

The campaign includes a website (NoBonPain.info) with nutrition information and a nutrition quiz based on some of Au Bon Pain's menu items, as well as leafleting at many ABP locations.

Today's launch will be followed by a twitter action aimed at educating fans of The Biggest Loser about Au Bon Pain's products.

UNITE HERE represents about 270,000 hospitality and food service workers in the U.S. and Canada

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141217/165163

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SOURCE UNITE HERE