The National Restaurant Association announced the renewal and expansion of its partnership with Healthy Dining, a California-based company that has been at the forefront of restaurant nutrition for more than twenty years.

“We are excited to continue our partnership with Healthy Dining, which has already provided a wealth of nutritional knowledge to our membership and the customers they serve each day,” says Joan McGlockton, the NRA’s vice president of industry affairs and food policy.

“As restaurants with twenty or more locations across the country begin to navigate the FDA’s menu labeling standard, Healthy Dining is our endorsed partner to provide expert nutritional analysis and guide restaurateurs through the compliance process. We look forward to working with Healthy Dining to provide the tools restaurants need as they offer nutritional information to the American consumer,” she says.

In collaboration with the NRA, Healthy Dining leads the largest ever restaurant industry nutrition initiative to support Americans in finding dietitian-approved menu choices emphasizing lean protein, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and unsaturated fats.

“Now that the menu labeling rules have been finalized, Healthy Dining’s team of registered dietitians is ready to guide restaurants through every step of the process, from accurate nutrient analysis, to following the FDA’s rules for presentation of calories on the menu and additional information upon request, to training management and staff, to meeting guests’ needs and requests,” says Anita Jones-Mueller, MPH, president of Healthy Dining.

“Like never before, nutrition is on the hearts, minds, and appetites of the consumer, and it is our passion to partner with restaurants and help them to prosper in this nutrition-focused era,” she says.

Healthy Dining’s consumer-facing web and mobile site features more than 4,000 dietitian-recommended menu choices from participating restaurants nationwide, spanning fast food to fine dining. The site is the only resource of its kind to support Americans looking for the best choices for weight loss and healthy lifestyles when eating away from home.

Healthy Dining is also the NRA’s partner on the Kids LiveWell program, which represents 150 restaurants and 42,000 restaurant locations nationwide. Healthy Dining’s dietitians validate menu items submitted by restaurants for inclusion in the Kids LiveWell program and promote the participating restaurants and qualifying kids’ choices to parents on the Kids LiveWell platform of HealthyDiningFinder.com.

“Our expanded partnership solidifies NRA and Healthy Dining’s commitment to collaborate and contribute to a healthier America by providing the public with an online, growing resource to empower Americans to find participating restaurants,” McGlockton says.

As part of its expanded partnership, National Restaurant Association and State Restaurant Association member restaurants are entitled to a 20 percent discount on nutrition services, joining the Healthy Dining Program, and joining the Kids LiveWell Program.