Expert Slams Australia’s Health Star Rating as Misleading

At AusNewsLanka, we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates.

Australia’s Health Star Rating system is meant to help you make quick, healthy choices at the supermarket — but according to paediatric nutritionist Mandy Sacher, it’s completely broken.

“We’re eating processed ingredients disguised as healthy snacks. We need an overhaul,” Sacher said.

Sacher was so frustrated with the current system, she created her own: the Real Food Rating. And when she compared it to the government’s star system? The results were wildly different.

Take muesli bars for example.

“In my system, they get one-and-a-half to two stars,” she explained.“But the Health Star Rating gives them four or even four-and-a-half stars.”

So what’s going wrong?

While the Health Star Rating has been around for more than a decade, it’s not mandatory and relies on food manufacturers to apply it correctly — which, as you might guess, isn’t always the case.

The rating system rewards ingredients like protein, fruits, vegetables and nuts, and penalizes sugar, saturated fats and high calorie content.But here’s the catch: it doesn’t account for highly processed additives — so companies can manipulate the numbers by adding things like extra fibre or protein, even if the product is packed with sugar or salt.

“Companies can essentially game the system,” said Philip Baker, a senior research fellow at the University of Sydney.“They can make unhealthy products look good.”

Baker says it’s time to ditch the system entirely and start fresh, pointing to front-of-package warning labels used successfully in other countries as a better option.

Meanwhile, Sacher has gone ahead and rated all the muesli bars on the market using her Real Food Rating, and she’s noticed another issue — many brands leave the Health Star Rating off the packaging entirely if it’s low.

“We need a system that’s compliant and gives parents a real guide,” she said.“If a product scores poorly, it shouldn’t just be hidden.”

Ironically, some of the healthiest choices don’t have any stars either — so consumers are left guessing.

Change is on the way — the government plans to tighten the rules and increase scrutiny on the Health Star Rating next year, with discussions about making it mandatory. But until then, Sacher warns, shoppers need to stay sharp.

Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka – the leading platform for news for Australians.