Shake-up for food health ratings

FRESH fruit and vegies may finally be included for the first time and processed food products re-evaluated in Australia’s food health ratings system, as the Federal Government prepares to overhaul the troubled scheme.

The Health Star Rating (HSR) system for food rates the value of products by giving them a score out of five, but experts say it confuses shoppers and needs a major shake-up.

Top of the list of demands under consideration by the Federal Government is for foods riddled with added sugar to be banned from scoring a high rating and fresh fruit and vegetables to be included in the ratings system.

Manufacturers can often score higher health ratings by adding superfluous protein and fibre to their sugar-laden products, such as sweet breakfast cereals. Pre-made sauces such as those used in stir-fries can earn higher scores on the assumption they will be used in meal preparation.

Another example is Milo, which scores 4.5 stars based on the sugary powder being prepared with skim milk.

“The appropriateness of the ‘as prepared’ provision has been raised by public health and consumer groups. The HSR Advisory Committee is addressing this issue as a matter of priority and has commenced investigating options,” a Federal Government spokeswoman said.

A technical advisory group has been set up to review the HSR calculator with concerns the algorithm used to score points for items such as sugar, fat and salt fails dietary guidelines. The demands to fix the system were issued to the Federal Government in recommendations by public health experts to a formal five-year review of the HSR. It will be finalised in mid-2019.