New fast food labelling coming in Victoria

If a fast food chain has more than 50 outlets in Victoria, the business will be required to provide kilojoule figures on all their foods as of 2012.

This is the only Australian state to introduce this requirement at this stage, but there are calls by many groups, including the Heart Foundation, for it to be a requirement of the Food Standards Code and therefore a national requirement.

“If accepted nationally, we believe this initiative will not only make it easier for Australians who eat out to make healthier choices, but will also encourage food companies to improve the nutritional profile of foods on offer”, said the National Director Healthy Weight for the National Heart Foundation, Ms Susan Anderson.

The Heart Foundation put a submission into the National Food Labelling Review earlier this year for such a requirement to be made for all those fast food chains with 20 or more outlets.

“A mandatory scheme eliminates loopholes, maximises impact, reduces inequities within industry and better ensures consistency”.

“As a minimum, any labelling scheme needs to include information on salt, saturated and trans fats as well as kilojoules to ensure people are making a genuinely healthier choice.

“We know that the Heart Foundation Tick program has encouraged many of Australia s largest and most successful food producers to reduce the saturated fat and kilojoules in their products, while increasing other important nutrients like fibre.

“Heart Foundation Tick licensees have been providing nutrition information at point of sale for foods eaten out of home since 2006 so we know it can be done, but we need to do much more”, Ms Anderson said.