McDonald's chief criticizes menu mandates

CHICAGO, May 19 (UPI) -- McDonald's Chief Executive Jim Skinner, speaking at a trade show in Chicago, criticized regulations requiring calorie information on restaurant menus.

Skinner delivered the main speech Sunday at the National Restaurant Association's yearly event at the McCormick Place convention center in Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported Monday.

The event continues through Tuesday and is among the largest trade shows in Chicago, with a predicted 74,000 guests in attendance.

Skinner said calorie rules are "redundant and flawed," claiming that McDonald's Corp. has provided sufficient calorie data for three decades,t he Tribune said.

He also said some people who push menu calorie regulations are "professional naysayers" and "CAVE people -- Citizens Against Virtually Everything."

Amid increasing forced regulations, a sluggish economy, rising food costs and labor struggles, "it's a perfect storm," Skinner said in the Tribune report.