The first phase of King County’s ban on trans fats in restaurants went into effect May 1, 2008. The King County Department of Health has been inspecting local restaurants for compliance and reports that more than 99 percent of them are using oils with zero trans fat in accordance to the law.

When this law was first proposed, I thought it sounded kind of sketchy for a number of reasons, one of which is that I thought it might change the taste of foods I like, and not for the better. I have to confess that I didn’t even realize that the ban was in place already until I read the county’s press release, so I guess that question’s been answered.

The idea behind eliminating trans fat oils is to improve the health of King County residents by removing from their diet a food that is known to have a contributing effect on medical issues like heart disease. Of the 1,451 restaurants inspected during the months of June and July, only 10 - less than one percent - were found in violation of the trans fat ban. The ban dictates that restaurants refrain from using partially hydrogenated oils, or trans fats, for frying, grilling or sautéing, or in a spread that contain 0.5 grams or more of trans fat per serving.

At the present time, restaurants are allowed to continue using trans fats in deep frying batter or yeast dough, which meant that the elephant ears at Bumbershoot were just as good in the mouth, bad for the body, as ever, but this exemption to the rule expires on February 1, 2009.

The Health Department has a page on the their website all about trans fat and the ban; in the future, restaurants found out of compliance with the ban will be listed on the site.

Food served in the manufacturer’s original, sealed packaging is exempted from the ban.