France battles against industrial restaurant food, by defining 'home-made'

PARIS – Restaurant-goers in France will start seeing a funny little symbol on their menus this week: a skillet with a house on top, indicating your menu choice is made in-house.

It's part of a new law meant to battle against the surprising amount of factory-made, pre-packaged food in French restaurants. France's chief of consumer affairs, Carole Delga, told The Associated Press that the logo would better inform customers about what they're getting, and highlight the country's culinary traditions.

However, many in the restaurant industry say the law doesn't go far enough, because it allows dishes made from frozen, pre-peeled or pre-cut products to count as home-made.

Parliament approved the law March 17, and it came into effect this week. Restaurants and catering companies have until January 1 to adapt their menus.