Itsu Revamps Technology Support for Menu Labelling

 

Japanese sushi chain Itsu has revamped its IT support as it gears up to provide more information to diners about the nutritional content of the dishes being served, as well as flagging up potential food allergens.

 

The sushi chain, which has 22 locations across London and the South East, has signed a deal with IT catering specialist, Fretwell-Downing Hospitality for its Saffron Nutrition nutritional analysis software.

 

The software will support Itsu’s drive to make nutritional data such as salt content, and the presence of allergy-inducing foods including nuts and MSG more visible to diners through the website and menu boards in the stores.

 

The online tool will be used by the central menu development team to produce summary traffic light reports denoting whether a particular component such as salt, is present in high, medium or low levels. As many as 14 potential food allergens can also be identified.

 

The chain’s menu labelling move comes at a time when there is greater scrutiny on the impact that eating out of the home is having on the nation’s health, and follows hot on the heels of Itsu’s introduction of a lower sodium soy sauce containing around 45% less salt.

 

Nigel Adams, FDH’s sales executive adds: “We’re delighted to be working with ITSU as a chain that is at the forefront of healthier fast food eating and is very aware of the need to make more nutritional information available to diners. As such there is a strong synergy with Saffron’s capabilities on both the menu planning and labelling front.”