Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) is calling for submissions on Proposal P1067 – Health Star Rating System.
This proposal considers whether the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (the Code) should be amended to require packaged foods sold in Australia and New Zealand to display a Health Star Rating (HSR) symbol.
Based on current evidence, amending the Code to mandate the HSR system appears warranted.
A mandatory HSR system is expected to:
- improve the consistency, comparability and accessibility of nutrition information
- address limitations of the voluntary approach
- strengthen consumer trust
- provide greater regulatory certainty for industry and enforcement agencies.
This 1st call for submissions outlines FSANZ’s assessment and proposed regulatory approaches and seeks stakeholder views to inform whether FSANZ should proceed to preparing a draft variation to amend the Code.
What’s being proposed?
The 1st call for submissions outlines proposed regulatory approaches, including:
- requiring the HSR symbol to be displayed on most packaged foods for retail sale where a nutrition information panel is required
- standardising the design and location of the HSR symbol
- requiring use of a prescribed Health Star Rating algorithm.
FSANZ also recognises the importance of consumer education to support understanding and effective use of a mandatory HSR system.
Assessment and evidence
FSANZ’s assessment is informed by preparatory work undertaken since 2024, including:
- consumer research
- technical assessments
- stakeholder consultation
- analysis of HSR algorithm performance.
Evidence considered by FSANZ indicates interpretive front‑of‑pack nutrition labelling, such as the HSR system, can:
- improve consumer understanding of the healthfulness of foods
- support healthier food choices.
Consultation
Stakeholder webinars
Webinars will be held during the consultation period to support stakeholder understanding of the proposed approaches.
If you are not already receiving updates about the HSR system work, join our mailing list to receive webinar details and other updates.
1st Call for submissions
This proposal is being assessed under FSANZ’s major procedure and will include 2 rounds of public consultation. The current call for submissions will run from 7 May to 21 June 2026.
- P1067 Call for submissions (1 MB)
- P1067 SD1 Health Star Rating consumer literature review (1 MB)
- P1067 SD2 Nutrition labelling focus groups (3.8 MB)
- P1067 SD3 Performance of the Health Star Rating algorithm (1.6 MB)
- P1067 SD4 Health Star Rating symbol assessment (1.1 MB)
- P1067 SD5 Health Star Rating technical assessments (1.1 MB)
- P1067 SD6 Preliminary consideration of costs and benefits (518 KB)
Submissions can be made on the P1067 Consultation Hub page.
Administrative assessment
Background
About the HSR system
The HSR system is an interpretive front‑of‑pack nutrition labelling system that summarises a food’s overall nutritional profile using a simple star rating.
The HSR system is currently voluntary. Proposal P1067 considers whether mandating the HSR system would improve how nutrition information is provided on food labels in Australia and New Zealand.
Why is FSANZ looking at this now?
Proposal P1067 was raised following a February 2026 request from the Food Ministers’ Meeting after voluntary uptake targets for the HSR system were not met.
While consumer awareness and use of the voluntary HSR system is high, assessment to date indicates that inconsistent uptake across products limits its effectiveness and contributes to variable consumer trust and understanding.
Preparatory work
In July 2024, food ministers asked FSANZ to start preparatory work on the potential mandating of the HSR system.
FSANZ’s preparatory work was undertaken to inform ministers’ decision-making on whether the HSR system should be mandated if the final uptake target was not met by industry (70% of intended products to display the HSR by 14 November 2025).
Read more about the HSR preparatory work and NIP review.