On 13 February 2026, Food Ministers agreed to request Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) to prepare a Proposal on mandating the HSR system in the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. This follows findings that uptake of the Health Star Rating system has fallen short of voluntary uptake targets set by Food Ministers in 2020. You can read about the targets and uptake here.
The communique from the Food Ministers’ Meeting is available here.
FSANZ will now begin this work, following legislated procedures set out in the FSANZ Act 1991. The work will be informed by preparatory work which began in 2024 at the request of ministers.
FSANZ’s work is expected to take 12-18 months and will include opportunities for public comment.
When FSANZ has completed its assessment and it has been approved by its Board, it will be provided to Food Ministers for consideration. Depending on FSANZ’s findings this may include a draft standard for a mandatory HSR system.
You can read more about FSANZ’s work here.
What this means for industry
- The HSR system remains voluntary.
- Should FSANZ recommend, and Ministers agree, to mandate the HSR system, a transition period will be put in place. FSANZ will be consulting on transitional arrangements in this proposal.
- We encourage businesses to continue to implement the HSR on their products in line with current requirements. The HSR Unit is available to provide support if needed.