The Working Lunch

We are just days away from the Midterm Elections and all we know is that our restaurant world is going to look a lot different this time next week. We are joined by Mike Whatley, VP of State Affairs & Grassroots Advocacy at the National Restaurant Association and Troy Flanagan, Vice President for Multistate Associates to give us their insight, analysis and yes, their predictions. We had a fun but very informative conversation.

It seems the media - and many politicians - are obsessed with the issue of surveillance pricing. Does anyone in our industry actually do surveillance pricing? Might some be looking to go down that road? We’ll do a deep with Brennan Duckett, Director of Regulatory & Policy at the National Association of Convenience Stores, to help us sort it out and manage expectations for what may be coming down the pike on that issue. And Mayor Mamdani is giving an early Christmas gift to the Trial Bar by introducing the POWER ACT creating a municipal right of action allowing basically anybody to sue any company or other entities over “unfair or unlawful business practices" whatever that means. If passed, it could make California’s pervasive PAGA law look small-time. We’ll take a look at it. We'll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We are joined once again by Michael Washburn, Principal of Washburn Consulting who has worked with the National Restaurant Association and major national brands to help navigate the increasingly turbulent waters around Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). Michael will give us the latest updates regarding important pending litigation, the states to watch in 2027 and the long-term future of the issue. And data farms are crowding the headlines recently and creating unusual political blocs, particularly at the local level. Between traditional NIMBYism, the MAHA Moms and now data farms, is the industry ready for a new era of local activism and social engagement? We’ll take a look. We'll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We are joined once again by the industry’s premier food and nutrition expert Maggie Gentile, a partner at Food Directions, to manage our expectations going forward on what’s happening with a potential federal definition of ultraprocessed foods and what the industry might have in store. And this week Meta was forced to cough up almost $18 billion dollars to a group of attorney generals over accusations that its platform - namely Facebook - was contributing to online addiction among young people. Is this just the beginning of a broader conversation about marketing to kids? We’ll take a look. And Mayor Mamdani is at it again. This time reaching out to local business community luminaries to provide political cover for his progressive agenda. It may not matter at all on policy but sure looks good politically. We’ll take a look. We'll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

The FDA was busy this week publishing a proposed rule to replace the current voluntary Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) notification program with a mandatory GRAS notification framework. In addition, they submitted placeholder paperwork with the intent of promulgating a long-awaited proposed definition for “ultra-processed foods.” What is driving this sudden outburst of regulatory action at the agency level regarding food. We’ll take a close look. And the mayor of New York City has jumped aboard the Teamsters truck and is partnering with the union in a takedown of Amazon. What does it mean for not only that company, but the all-important delivery gig workers in the city. We’ll kick that around as well. We'll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

We start off the podcast this week with an update on what's happening in Washington on the hemp beverage front and whether forces in Congress and the White House can agree on a framework for this emerging industry product line. And then we are joined once again by Michael Halen, Senior Restaurant Analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence to talk about the state of the industry, the financial health of the larger players, and whether competition between industry business models is infusing new energy into intra-industry policy debates. We'll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

As we reported last week, the National Restaurant Association sent a letter to Congressional leaders asking them to delay by two years the forthcoming hemp product ban to provide the predictability operators need and to allow Congress the time to rethink its approach for a regulatory alternative that responsibly meets consumer demand. We are joined once again by Mike Whatley, the Vice President of State Affairs & Grassroots Advocacy at the National Restaurant Association to walk us through the issue and what the industry needs for our elected leaders. Additionally, Mike will stay with us and give us his take on the first half of 2026 and how the industry fared managing their issue portfolios across the fifty states. And we had another round of primary elections this week and the big winners were socialists - yes, you heard that correctly, socialists. Has NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani entered the arena as another political kingmaker? We’ll discuss. We'll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

Legislation is pending in the U.S. Senate that would drastically speed up the process for organizing unions in the workplace. The bill has already passed the Republican-led House and could be on the senate floor any day. We’re joined once again by Ed Egee, VP of Government Relations and Workforce Development at the National Retail Federation to analyze the bill and the threats it poses to the industry as well as the broader shift of Republicans to more pro-labor policies. And Oklahoma voters fairly easily rejected a ballot measure this week to increase the minimum wage to $15/hr by 2029. At the center of the debate? The negative impact the measure would have on inflation and affordability. Could the table be turning on the narrative surrounding a key industry issue. We’ll discuss. We'll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.

The industry has had a tough couple of weeks regarding its long-running feud with the banks and credit card companies coming up on the wrong end of a highly anticipated court decision and the veto pen. We’re joined once again by Dan Swanson, Counsel to the Merchants Payment Coalition to tell us what happened, why it happened, and more importantly, where do we go from here. And a few states held primary elections last week - most notably in California, Texas, Maine and Iowa. We take a look at the winners and losers and what it means for the industry. We’ll talk about those issues and wrap it up with the legislative scorecard.