Late last week food ministers agreed to ask Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) to prepare for a mandatory health star rating system.
This a win for the AMA, which has led calls for the system to be made mandatory.
However, we continue to call for further action to tackle Australia's growing rates of chronic disease and obesity.
In a media statement , AMA President Dr Danielle McMullen said the move was an important step off the back of strong public health and consumer group advocacy, but it must be party of a broader, co-ordinated strategy to improve the food environment, including more investment in preventive health.
"This is a positive first step, but it cannot be the last. Labelling alone will not solve Australia's obesity crisis. We need a comprehensive prevention agenda that addresses the over‑consumption of unhealthy food and drinks, particularly those high in added sugar," she said.
Our national Sickly Sweet campaign calls for the introduction of a tax on sugary drinks to reduce the consumption of more than 2.2 billion litres of sugary drinks consumed each year.
FSANZ will undertake two rounds of public consultation on making the system mandatory and will report back to Ministers for a final decision.
