Including a health star rating (HSR) on all packaged foods will offer shoppers clear and consistent nutritional information about what they are buying, a public health advocacy group says.
Food ministers voted in February to progress a plan to make the interpretive front-of-pack nutrition labels compulsory for almost all packaged foods.
The stars will be displayed where a nutrition information panel is already required, and special purpose products such as baby formula and alcohol will be exempt.
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The first round of public consultation on the proposal attracted more than 380 submissions.
“These are being considered alongside the scientific evidence as part of our ongoing assessment,” Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) chief executive Dr Sandra Cuthbert said.
The info-at-a-glance system, which was introduced in 2014, has been voluntary to this point and manufacturers have chosen to display the stars on just 39 per cent of foods in Australia.
The goal was 70 per cent by November 2025.
Ratings range from half a star to five stars, with more stars denoting a healthier choice.
Different products — soft drink and yoghurt for example — are calculated differently, so the advice for consumers is to only compare star grades of similar packaged foods.
More than 82 per cent of Australians say they would like to see the stars on all packaged products so they can make quick and informed choices.
Shoppers not ‘getting the whole picture’
The Food for Health Alliance has thrown its voice behind a mandatory system, saying consumers have not been “getting the whole picture” under the voluntary scheme.
“Mandating health star labels will help to ensure consumers have clear, consistent nutrition information on all packaged food,” alliance executive manager Jane Martin told 7NEWS.com.au.
“A voluntary system has enabled companies to selectively display health star labels on their highest scoring products, effectively gaming the system and using these labels as a marketing tactic.
“Australians deserve honesty about what’s in every product, not just the ones companies choose to label.”
Some experts have talked the health star system down, arguing the algorithm that helps deliver a score is flawed and can be manipulated.
“For example we have published how breakfast cereals with added protein can use this to offset their high sugar and sodium contents,” George Institute for Global Health food governance program lead Alex Jones told 7NEWS.com.au in May.
Jones’ PhD explored Australia’s HSR system and similar nutrition labels used globally.
Martin added that mandating the system would create an opportunity to strengthen it, “including by regularly reviewing and updating how ratings are calculated to align with dietary guidelines, and gives food companies an incentive to make their products healthier”.
More than 50 countries have adopted the labels, including 19 where they are mandatory.
“If the proposal progresses to a draft regulatory measure, there will be a second opportunity for public consultation, scheduled for later this year,” FSANZ said.
