More than 10 years after Health Star Ratings were first introduced, experts say the voluntary system has failed because manufacturers have not been obligated to use it.

The system, which was launched in 2014, rates the overall nutritional profile of a packaged food product from 0.5 to 5 stars.

Currently just over a third of products (36 per cent) feature a Health Star Rating and, unsurprisingly, it’s the 5-star products that are far more likely to feature the rating (61 per cent) compared to only 16 per cent of 0.5-star products.

“Voluntary uptake has failed,” Dr Alexandra Jones, the head of Food Governance at The George Institute for Global Health said.

She said because the system was voluntary, it was applied “selectively… often for marketing purposes”.

“Fundamentally people understand the concept of stars and they can use it to make a better choice,” she said.

“In the real world their ability to actually use it has been mostly limited by the fact that it’s only on a third of products.”

In 2019, a review of the system found consumers understood the system but it was not on enough labels to adequately compare similar products.

The Australian, New Zealand and state and territory governments then set the industry a series of targets in an effort to lift the uptake.

The final target, 70 per cent by November 2025, almost certainly will not be met.

“Until it’s mandatory, people will continue to struggle out there to understand how to make good choices,” Dietitians Australia CEO Magriet Raxworthy said.

“Australians want easy, transparent nutrition information about the food they are choosing for themselves and their families, and mandating the system will bring more consistency and clarity across the shelves.”

Jones said Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) had been ordered to start the preparatory work for a mandatory system but she feared the timeline could blow out as far as 2029.

“Now that we’ve had 10 years of voluntary operation we know a lot about how this system works and where it needs to be improved,” she said.

“We don’t want this to go on any longer than it has to.”

She said mandatory country of origin labelling, which has seen an uptake of more than 90 per cent in a similar time frame, proved it was possible to implement a mandatory Health Star Rating system quickly.

“Rapid food labelling change is definitely possible when it is mandated,” she said.

A spokesperson from FSANZ confirmed preparatory work to inform future decision-making by food ministers on whether the Health Star Rating system should be mandated was underway.

“If the voluntary uptake target (70 per cent of intended products displaying the HSR by 14 November 2025) is not met, FSANZ’s preparatory work will enable an efficient process for incorporating the HSR system into the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code, should ministers ask FSANZ to consider mandating the system,” the spokesperson said.

How does the health star rating system work?

Manufacturers input the nutritional information of their product on a government website, which uses an algorithm to calculate the Health Star Rating of the product.

The algorithm gives points for protein, fibre, fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes and removes points for saturated fat, sugar and salt.

Products are given a rating between 0.5 and 5 stars.

The manufacturer can then choose whether to display the rating on their product or not.

Consumers ideally then use the rating to compare similar products and ultimately make healthier choices.

The rating aligns with the Australian Dietary Guidelines and New Zealand Eating and Activity Guidelines.