Why the Australasian Health Star Rating needs major changes to make it work
Unhealthy diets cause multiple physical and mental health problems. To help consumers make healthier choices, Australia and New Zealand introduced the voluntary Health Star Rating (HSR) system in 2014.
Jessica C Lai, Alana Harrison, Hongzhi Gao and Samuel Becher, from Victoria University of Wellington, believe there are ways to improve the Health Star Rating system and in this article they look at the system’s drawbacks and ways to move forward. This article has been republished from The Conversation under Creative Commons licence CC BY-ND 4.0.
Health Star Rating
The New Zealand and Australian Governments developed the Health Star Rating system to help consumers choose healthier options among comparable food items. The label displays the Health Star Rating along with nutritional information.
The system is supposedly designed to provide consumers with an overall signal about a food’s healthiness. Presumably, this should nudge consumers to make more informed and healthier decisions.
Five years on, the Australian and New Zealand governments are conducting a system review. Our research shows that, while the initiative is noble, the devil is in the details. There is a need, and hopefully an opportunity to improve the system and reconsider some of its key aspects.
Loopholes and consumer misconception
Under the HSR system, products are labelled from 0.5 stars (the least healthy score) to 5 stars (the healthiest products). The rating is determined by evaluating the overall nutritional value of the product. It compares the content of ‘good’ ingredients (i.e. fibre, protein, fruit, vegetables, nuts and legumes) with the ‘bad’ ones (i.e. saturated fat, energy, total sugar and sodium).
Hamburger
Hamburger and chips. Often we are told that particular foods are good or bad for us, but by eating a balanced diet and exercising regularly you will be able to find an appropriate time to eat all kinds of foods.
But we believe most consumers are unaware that the HSR system is compensatory. This means one negative nutritional attribute can be cancelled out, or balanced, by a positive attribute. A manufacturer can receive a high HSR score for a product rich in sugar by adding a healthy ingredient such as fibre.
It is also likely that most consumers are unaware that the HSR rating is calculated on an ‘as prepared’ basis. This means a product can enjoy a high rating based on the nutritional value of preparatory ingredients.
Milo found itself embroiled in controversy for displaying 4.5 stars on its chocolate powder, though the powder itself clearly does not merit this rating. The 4.5-star rating was based on consuming merely three teaspoons of powder combined with skim milk. But who actually consumes Milo this way?
Furthermore, HSR scores are intended to allow comparison only among similar products. A four-star rating for a cereal cannot be compared to a four-star rating given to milk. While the two products display the same number of stars, their healthiness may differ significantly.
Breakfast meal
A healthy breakfast is a good way to start the day, but there are often high levels of sugar and fats within processed cereals. The healthiness of your breakfast will also change depending on what you have with it.
What holds the system back
There is scepticism about the HSR’s authenticity, reliability and effectiveness. This stems in part from the system being self-regulated.
In addition, the system is non-mandatory, leaving manufacturers free to decide when and how to use it. For instance, only around 20% of packaged goods available in New Zealand and Australian supermarkets have an HSR. To add to the distortion, a disproportionate number of these show high ratings. This indicates that manufacturers only use the HSR for their healthier products.
A voluntary system does little to counter the inbuilt incentive that manufacturers have to use unhealthy components such as sugar, salt and saturated fats. These produce pleasure and create ‘craveable’ foods and food addiction. Manufacturers likely do not use a HSR for these products. However, consumers do not interpret missing information as ‘the worst-case scenario’, but assume average quality.
Finally, the system does not effectively assist the vulnerable consumers who need it the most. While HSR does help some middle- to high-income consumers, it does a poor job with respect to consumers of low socio-economic status. This suggests that the label requires consumers to be educated about its meaning.
Time to move forward
Some improvements could carry the HSR forward a great distance.
If the system were made mandatory, it would likely raise consumers’ awareness. There should also be more education initiatives about the HSR. This, in turn, would incentivise manufacturers to produce healthier foods and beverages.
At the same time, we should strive to minimise the costs involved and consider backing the system with government funding. This would allow all businesses to participate in the program, including less profitable or smaller businesses. It would also prevent costs from being passed onto consumers.
As a minimum, if the system is not made mandatory, a general ‘non-participation’ label should be introduced. If a producer opts not to label its product, it should be required to use a conspicuous cautionary statement. Such a statement should declare, for instance, that “the manufacturer has chosen not to verify the health rating of this product” or “the healthiness of this product cannot be verified.''
Studies show the HSR rating would have a bigger impact if placed in the upper left corner of the packaging and used colours. It could use a traffic light system, with 0.5-2.5 stars on a red background, 3 to 4 stars on amber and 4.5-5 star products on green. The colour-coded system has proved to be more effective with marginalised groups of consumers.
All easier said than done.
Adolescent diet
In this video clip, Carolyn Cairncross, a nutritionist with the New Zealand Nutrition Foundation, describes some of the key components that should be included in the adolescent diet. She also provides advice on healthy eating practices such as eating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables, keeping the body in a well hydrated state, not skipping meals and avoiding energy drinks high in caffeine.
Healthy diets are important for physical and psychological well-being and for strengthening our communities and economies. However, any regulation of the food industry is likely to be resisted by its strong and well-organised lobbying power . To fight this battle, the consumers’ voice is crucial to ensure we can all make good and healthy food choices.
Related content
High-value nutrition products are a growing and important industry for New Zealand. Read about the process in Developing healthy food products – an introduction.
Guiding food choices looks at energy needs and how systems like the Health Rating system provide guidance on choosing healthier food options.
Health claims and food products covers what, and what not, manufacturers are able to claim about their food products.
Sugar is another controversial food product, explore this further in our article, Sugar on trial. Chocolate hearts looks at how researchers have found that high levels of chocolate consumption 'seem' to reduce the risk of developing heart disease, but chocolate should be eaten in moderation because of its saturated fat and sugar content.
The first 5-year review of the Health r Rating system was completed in August 2019, with a s of recommendations for improvements, the report can be accessed here.
Activity ideas
The aim of this activity is to make an appealing snack bar while understanding that energy from food components should match energy needs. Older students can determine the nutritional values of their snack bars and use the online on the page Calculating and applying Health Star Ratings to obtain an estimated Health Rating.
The Sorting food into groups activity is designed to encourage students to think about foods and group them according to their own categorisation system. Students then do online research regarding food energy and healthy food recommendations and revise their grouping systems in light of the new knowledge.
Useful links
Read about the Milo controversy when it displayed 4.5 stars on it’s chocolate powder on the website.
Visit the Ministry for Primary Industries website to learn more about the Health Rating system.
In 2022 the Health Star Rating system was upgraded, making it tougher on sugar and salt – read the press announcement on the MPI website.
The Food Standards Australia New Zealand website has information about food standards, consumer information and science.
The full research paper that this article is based can be accessed here.
Acknowledgement
This article was written by Jessica C Lai (Senior Lecturer in Commercial Law, Victoria University of Wellington), Alana Harrison (LLB(Hons) & BCOM Undergraduate Student, Victoria University of Wellington), Hongzhi Gao (Associate Professor, Victoria University of Wellington) and Samuel Becher (Associate Professor of Business Law, Victoria University of Wellington).
The article was originally published on The Conversation, 18 June 2019. Read the original article.
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