The nutrition facts that have been posted in the Georgetown dining hall for the past two weeks are wrong, University nutritionist Jody Engel said on Monday.
According to the signs displayed at each station in the Leo J. O’Donovan cafeteria, one slice of Leo’s cheese pizza contains 644 calories, 21.5 grams of fat and 91.8 grams of carbohydrates.
A piece of medium deep-dish cheese pizza from Domino’s Pizza, by contrast, has only 238 calories, half the fat and one third the carbohydrates, according to the Domino’s website.
“I think this information just isn’t right,” Engel said. “The woman who is doing the [nutrition] analysis does not have the most complex information or program.” She declined to give the name of the individual responsible for the erroneous facts.
Vice President of Auxiliary Services Margie Bryant said she was unaware that the nutrition facts had already been posted. “It’s embarrassing,” she admitted. (Xanax) “Maybe it’s better that we don’t put out the information if we’re not sure that it’s correct.”
According to the Leo’s nutrition cards, a vegetarian spicy black bean burger weighs in at 432 calories, while a regular burger contains only 146.
“We don’t want the labels to push students onto eating a hamburger, thinking that they are getting less calories than they really are getting,” Bryant said.
Engel accounted for the discrepancy by explaining that the analysis for the burgers was based on the entire sandwich, including bread, cheese and condiments.
When asked why grilled chicken adds about 300 calories and 15 grams of fat to the Grab-n-Go salad, Bryant said she did not know where the nutritional information for the Grab-n-Go meals came from but that it was almost certainly incorrect as well.
“I thought that she had the proper tools to get the job done,” Bryant said of the woman who made the nutrition signs. “I think she does a good job in general, but I don’t think she has the background to understand what you’re talking about when you’re breaking up a menu.”
Clare Schramm (CAS ‘08), a member of the Georgetown University Student Association’s Department of Housing and Facilities, which works with Marriott Dining Services to address dining issues on campus, said her committee was unaware of any fallacious nutrition information.
Bryant proposed redoing the labels with Engel’s supervision and enlisting nursing students to help with the process.
As University nutritionist, Engel said her first goal will be to accurately recalculate and publicize the nutrient analysis of every item available in the dining hall.
“We have decided to pull our nutrition labeling information from the serving line until our new nutrient analysis software has arrived and we have completed the new analysis of our foods,” Engel said.
A computerized database for nutrition facts should be up and running soon, Bryant said.
