FDA-22-SOL-1251895.pdf

PDF 383 KB Posted May 5, 2022

Attached to: Collecting Nutrition Data or Top 100 Restaurant Chains
Solicitation number: FDA-22-SOL-1251895
Issued by: Department of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration

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FDA-22-SOL-1251895

Collecting Nutrition Data for Top 100 Restaurant Chains

1. Background

The Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) needs additional restaurant menu data from selected top restaurant chains in the U.S., including nutrition data from 2021 to support mission critical initiatives, including the ability to monitor nutritional and other changes in the food supply over time.

FDA has been enhancing monitoring and surveillance efforts for various nutrients in the food supply (i.e.

sodium). Currently, a challenge with monitoring the nutrient content of restaurant foods is that nutrition information for foods sold in restaurants is not routinely available, some sources of information do not provide thorough descriptions of food items, or weights of food items, and item component and/or ingredient information may not be available. To understand how nutrients in the food supply have changed over time, FDA requires more complete restaurant data. Improved monitoring capabilities will enhance FDA’s ability to fulfill its mission of protecting and promoting public health. The availability of data will enable FDA to conduct research and surveillance in the areas under its jurisdiction, including menu labeling and ingredient safety.

2. Objectives

The objective of this acquisition is to obtain access to all menu and nutrition information from identified restaurants in a format that is searchable (e.g. images, pdfs, etc.) as well as to obtain usable data on restaurant menu items (e.g. data collected transcribed into spreadsheets) for 2021. The data collected shall be provided in various formats (e.g. searchable images and pdfs, screenshots, web tables, Excel files, Word documents, etc.), and should include metadata and information such as the following: date of collection, date presented on information collected, specific descriptions of menu items, component information, ingredient information, nutrition data, serving size data, how items are served, and weights of food items, components, and ingredients when available. The collected images of menus, web captures, and electronic copies of menus should also be provided. The tasks below describe these requests in further detail. Access to this information will allow FDA to improve monitoring of restaurant foods in the U.S. market and to enable analyses that will inform policy decisions.

3. Requirements

The work includes seven (7) tasks to encompass receipt of data, documentation, quality control, and customer support. FDA shall coordinate with the Contractor to discuss all tasks in more detail at the onset of the contract and should a more efficient way to approach each task be agreed upon by the Contractor and FDA, the details below may be modified. All the tasks are required for the base plus four (4) option years.

3.1 Task 1: Data Collection and Delivery of U.S. Restaurant Nutrition and Menu Information Files

3.1.1. Restaurant and Menu Information Data Collection

FDA will provide a list of U.S. restaurants, not to exceed 100 (one hundred) restaurants to the Contractor. The Contractor shall collect restaurant menu and nutrition information for restaurant foods and beverages, which may amount to multiple files (e.g. pdfs, screenshots, web tables, etc.).

As part of this process the Contractor shall obtain copies of the following:

• Customer menus (various formats)

• Catering menus (various formats)

• Nutrition information (various formats)

• Allergen information (various formats)

• Food component information (e.g. bun, cheese, etc.)

• Food ingredient information (e.g. milk, salt, etc.)

• Food description information (e.g. web clippings, downloadable pdf’s, etc.).

Data shall be collected in color for each restaurant, shall represent 2021 data, and will be provided in legible, searchable, and manageable format (e.g. .pdf, .jpg, or .gif). Data captures shall be processed by credible optical character recognition (OCR) or other relevant software so they are text searchable. If collection of this information amounts to numerous pages, FDA and the Contractor shall discuss the best option for how the information shall be organized. Items should be presented by menu section in each searchable document. The information may be presented by the restaurant in various formats (e.g. information presented on website such as individually loading webpages per menu item, online ordering, calculators, drop down menus to see more information, downloadable pdf’s, tables on websites, etc.) such that collection could be different for each restaurant. If multiple formats are present, all formats should be collected in the exact order of the way the restaurant presents their data (for example, by menu sections) to ensure data quality. Proper organization of the data is required, and it may be necessary to include a master table of contents where the Contractor will list all documents collected and a short description about what is in each document. The goal is to collect information for each restaurant in 1 day when possible to ensure a focused time point for collection as restaurant information can change frequently. For some restaurants that have an extensive listing of items (e.g. due to multiple sizes of products and/or options within the product selection), this process and timing will need to be properly planned. Examples of what the Contractor shall collect include, but are not limited to the following information for each menu item:

Data Collection Elements:

• Collection source

• Date of collection

• Menu document date

• Menu item name (verbatim)

• Menu section where item is listed

• Menu item description (verbatim)

• Menu item detailed description (written by Contractor - additional descriptor information that can be gleaned from menu or images)

• Item component information (when available, e.g. bun, lettuce, mustard, etc.)

• Item ingredient list (when available, e.g. what is in the bun, lettuce, mustard, etc.)

• Nutrition information for the menu item (when available)

• Nutrition information for the meal components (when available)

• Nutrition information for the meal ingredients (when available)

• Serving size information (in grams, ounces, fluid ounces or common measures such as 1 bowl of soup) for the menu items, components, and ingredients (when available)

• Allergen information (major allergens: milk, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, wheat, soybean, and egg, plus any others listed, e.g. MSG) for the menu items, components, and ingredients

• Nutrient content claims (if any)

• Nutrition disclaimers (e.g. how was the nutrient content for menu items calculated?)

• Notes and comments (e.g. noting any webpages that did not load with menu items that could be captured and why, etc.)

The data collected shall be sourced from the restaurant itself and not from miscellaneous websites that provide information about the restaurant. Most restaurants have link(s) to their menu, nutrition, and allergen nutrition information on their landing page or main menu. If the information is not readily found, a general search through menu bar options and FAQs webpage can be used to determine if the information is not available. The restaurant’s headquarters and/or customer service could verify access to information. Furthermore, data shall be complete (e.g. all menu sections, all component and ingredient information, etc.), organized, and not be copied over from already existing databases owned by the Contractor. Each collection shall include an accurate and verifiable date stamp that shall be represented on all documents. To ensure the date stamp is representative of a focused time, any data that presents issues shall be recollected in totality and not added to sections months later. Recollection can be avoided by proper quality control procedures. The Contractor shall provide documentation regarding data collection processes, quality control processes (Task 3), and any limitations in data collection or issues encountered.

Data collectors shall possess properly skilled backgrounds (e.g. experience in this type of data collection, database creation and management, data entry, data analysis, data science, detail oriented, understanding of restaurant foods, etc.) and FDA shall have a direct line of communication to all data collectors for training and to ensure that collection requirements are clearly understood. The volume of information collected is expected to be significant and will require adequate staffing to meet deadlines.

3.1.2. Development of Unique Identifiers

FDA will share information with the Contractor about the use of unique identifiers (IDs) such that the Contractor shall develop unique IDs as needed through the data collection process. Examples of unique IDs include, but are not limited to the following:

• Collection ID

• Document ID

• Restaurant ID

• Product ID

• Component ID

The Contractor shall provide documentation regarding development and definitions of the unique identifiers (Task 3).

3.1.3. Data Collection Event Log

The Contractor shall provide a supplementary file (e.g. Excel) with meta-data as a ‘Data Collection Event Log’. This data should be logged at the time of data collection for each restaurant. Examples of what the Contractor shall collect include, but are not limited to the following information:

FIELD DESCRIPTION

Collection ID [restaurant_id]_[collection date]

Collection date Date documents were obtained (format YYYYMMDD).

Information source Restaurant website or in-person visit.

Restaurant name Common name of the restaurant.

Restaurant ID Unique restaurant identifier.

Restaurant website Restaurant front landing page.

Restaurant address Address of the restaurant visited to obtain information, if there was a physical visit to a restaurant location.

Information types

Coded Y- yes (obtained and provided to FDA), N – no (did not find required information) for the following required information:

1. Menu item names

2. Menu item descriptions

3. Nutrition Information

4. Component Information

5. Ingredients

6. Allergen/Sensitivity

7. Nutrition Claims

8. Nutrition disclaimer information

Document total Total count of documents collected.

Missing documents Information type not collected and rationale.

Customer service number Restaurant corporate phone number called to validate online data.

Call summary Summarize the phone conversation with customer service or headquarter office and results.

Notes Additional information that supports data collections including findings and assumptions

Data collector (s) Initials of data collector (s).

Recollection details What was recollected

Recollection date Date of recollection

Data collector (s)_Recollect Initials of data collector (s)

3.1.4. Listing of Documents

The Contractor shall provide a supplementary file (e.g. Excel spreadsheet) with the listing of documents collected. This data should be logged at the time of data collection for each restaurant.

Examples of what the Contractor shall include, but are not limited to the following:

FIELD DESCRIPTION

Document id Content type 3-digit unique identifier

Document name Full file name of document collected/captured with file format included

Document type File format

Document description Short description of the types of menu items and information collected in the document and what is included in the PDF

Collection id Restaurant id collection date

Date captured The date this document was created, either captured from website or in person.

Content type Information type related to document. For example, “menu”, “nutrition information”, or “allergen information”.

Date on document Date stamp as written on the document (if available). For example: “Spring 2019”, “09/01/2019 – 12/31/2019”.

Link(s) URLs of website captured documents (where possible). The primary URL should be for the menu section.

Data collection files obtained should be collated in a folder by restaurant name and unique ID designated for each restaurant. Data collection folders and file formats will be discussed with FDA. Examples of how the folders and files shall be saved include the following:

Folder naming structure:

Restaurant id collection date]_[restaurant name]

NOTE: if recollection occurs, the updated recollection date should be included.

Filename Structure:

[restaurant_id]_[collection_date]_[document_type]_[document_id]_[standardized_restaurant_na me].fileformat

Excel spreadsheet

Filename structure: [restaurantID]_[collectiondate]_menudata_[standardized restaurant_name]_FoodTrak.xlsx

The general process and specific methodology for data collection will be further discussed on a conference call. FDA desires that all data collectors be present and in direct communication with FDA to ask questions through the collection process. A summary of a general process for data collection is as follows:

1) Review restaurant’s official website for all required information (refer to Data Collection Elements).

2) Verify with restaurant’s customer service regarding more updated information or missing required information.

3) If some or all of the information was not found or was not available from the restaurant’s website or customer service, the Contractor shall collect data from a physical restaurant location. (Since Menu Labeling went into effect, restaurants with 20 or more chains are required to make available menu and nutrition data upon request.)

4) Log all data collection events and metadata as well as the documents obtained (pdf, web tables, web calculators, screenshots, etc.), including notation of required documents that were not available.

5) Perform quality control checks prior to delivery (see Task 3). FDA will provide a checklist to guide quality control checks. If, upon receipt of files by FDA, errors are caught (e.g. ingredients or serving size missed, etc.), the Contractor will be asked to correct or to recollect data.

All data collection shall be completed prior to Task 2 (Data Entry) to ensure that collection occurs within the shortest time frame possible and that there is adequate time within the same calendar year should recollection be necessary. Due to size, delivery of files may require use of a secure file transfer protocol (FTP) site, approved by FDA. If FDA’s option for this is not feasible, the Contractor may need to establish one. All files shall undergo quality control checks by the Contractor prior to delivery to FDA and all files shall be scanned for viruses before delivery to the FDA.

Furthermore, a pilot for this data collection task shall be conducted for 5 restaurants (see Task 4) to assure adequate and consistent methodology. For the pilot and for the full collection, all files (e.g. Tasks 1, 2, 4) shall be delivered on a rolling basis as completed to allow time for FDA to review incoming files. If quality control checks by FDA identify missing information, poor data collection, gaps, and/or errors, the Contractor shall recollect all FDA requested data in 2021 (with a new updated time stamp for all data so that the collection dates are the same for all items from one restaurant). Data collection (all files) shall be reviewed and confirmed as complete by FDA before acceptance of the deliverable.

3.2 Task 2: Develop a Data Package Containing Restaurant Nutrition and Menu Information

FDA has established a database in Excel, which includes nutrition and menu information from top chain restaurants. The Contractor shall further develop this data package (format to be discussed with FDA), with menu and nutrition information for the list of U.S. restaurants that are provided by FDA for 2021. A conference call will be held to discuss components of the data package in more detail. Each row of the main spreadsheet should include the full data for each individual restaurant product. Some of this information will be available from Task 1 menus and online information as well as supplementary restaurant materials. All files shall undergo quality control checks by the Contractor prior to delivery to FDA. If quality control checks by FDA identify missing information, poor data collection, gaps, and/or errors, the Contractor shall re-enter/correct all FDA requested data. The data package shall include multiple spreadsheets or tabs and should include but is not limited to inclusion of the following fields shown below in Tables 4.2.1, 4.2.2, and 4.2.3.:

3.2.1. Information Directly Input from Task 1 Menus:

FIELD DESCRIPTION

Restaurant name Common name of the restaurant in all lower-case letters, apostrophe and other punctuation removed and "_" between each word.

Restaurant Id Unique restaurant identifier.

Product Id Serves as the unique item identifier for the menu item. Generated from Restaurant id, initials of the Restaurant name and a number series generated as a unique row number to index converted data.

Restaurant menu section Broader menu heading or grouping under which the menu item can be found on the menu.

Fda food category Field should be left empty (for FDA use).

Menustat category Menu item categorization developed by New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

Age group Code to categorized kids and senior meals.

Menu item name Menu item name exactly as it appears on the restaurant’s menu.

Menu item name extended Menu item name and 2-3-word additional descriptor that links menu items to a larger food type when the menu item description and restaurant menu section is unclear.

Menu item description Description of the menu item as it appears on menu.

Nutrition information name Nutrition item name exactly as it appears on the restaurant’s nutrition information.

Allergens Disclosed allergen component within the menu item build. Major allergens are: milk, egg, finfish, crustacean shellfish, wheat, soybean, peanuts and tree nuts.

Combo meal y Code to indicate if a menu item is part of a combination meal although nutrition information is provided separately.

Duplicate size Code to indicate if the exact menu item name and description is provided in different sizes, portions or on different menus.

Menu item size Designation for menu item sizes that are not covered by the serving size oz, serving size fl oz, serving size lbs, and serving size g columns. The serving size value and unit of measure (e.g. pieces, ladle, cups, bowl) is entered in the same field.

Serving size oz Serving size presented in ounces.

Serving size g Serving size presented in grams.

Serving size fl oz Serving size presented in fluid ounces.

Serving size lbs Serving size presented in pounds.

Calories kcal Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Calories from fat Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Total fat g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Saturated fat g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Trans fat g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Polyunsaturated fat g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Monounsaturated fat g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Cholesterol mg Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Sodium mg Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Total carbohydrates g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Dietary fiber g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Sugars g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Protein g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Potassium mg Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Vitamin A iu Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Vitamin a perc dv Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Vitamin c mg Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Vitamin c perc dv Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Calcium mg Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Calcium perc dv Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Iron mg Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Iron perc dv Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Nutrition claims In the cases where menu item was listed under a special menu section or heading or labeled with a claim individually.

For example: “Low Sodium”, “Healthy”, and “Gluten Free”.

Information source Descriptor of the format from which the menu item nutrition data was captured and entered.

Collection date Date nutrition information was captured from the website, or collected physically from the restaurant.

Collection year Current calendar year.

Menu document date Effective date (or update date), month/year, season that the menu was created as printed on the documents collected.

Nutrition document date Effective date (or update date), month/year, season that the menu item nutrition information was created as printed on the documents collected.

Allergen document date Effective date (or update date), month/year, season that the menu item allergen information was created as printed on the documents collected.

Comments Any additional information not captured in other fields that is relevant to the nutrition information or menu list.

Reference file menu Full file name including format (.pdf, .jpeg) of the source document that contains menu item description for the menu item.

Reference_file_menu_2 Full file name including format (.pdf, .jpeg) of the source document that contains menu item description in cases where there is information on menu item from two different files.

Reference file nutrition Full file name including format (.pdf, .jpeg) of the source document that contains nutrition information for the menu item.

Reference_file_nutrition_2 Full file name including format (.pdf, .jpeg) of the source document that contains nutrition information for the menu item in cases where there is nutrition information for menu item from two separate files.

Reference file allergen Full file name including format (.pdf, .jpeg) of the source document that contains allergen information for the menu item.

If additional nutrition information is presented, but not listed above, it shall also be included as fields in the deliverable.

3.2.2. Component and Ingredient Information:

Restaurant name Common name of the restaurant in all lower-case letters, apostrophe and other punctuation removed and "_" between each word.

Product id Serves as the unique item identifier for the menu item.

Generated from restaurant_id, initials of the restaurant_name and a number series generated as a unique row number to index converted data.

Component id Product id and a 3-digit unique identifier.

Menu item name Menu item name exactly as it appears on the restaurant’s menu.

Menu item name extended Menu item name and additional information about the item as it appears on the restaurant’s menu.

Component Name of menu item component

Ingredients Full ingredient list as provided on restaurant website.

Allergens Disclosed allergen component within the menu item build. Major allergens are: milk, egg, finfish, crustacean shellfish, wheat, soybean, peanuts and tree nuts.

Component size Designation for size of components that are not covered by the serving size oz, serving size fl oz, serving size lbs, and serving size g columns. The serving size value and unit of measure (e.g. pieces, ladle, cups, slice) is entered in the same field.

Serving size oz Serving size presented in ounces.

Serving size g Serving size presented in grams.

Serving size fl oz Serving size presented in fluid ounces.

Serving size lbs Serving size presented in pounds.

Calories kcal Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.

Calories from fat Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, Total fat g Menu item nutrition information as stated in data collected, including ranges and less than symbols.