WHO nutrition guidelines: 43% of baby, toddler foods in supermarkets exceed sugar limits

Ready-made foods for infants and toddlers bought in pouches and boxes in Australian supermarkets fall dismally short of nutrient, labelling and marketing requirements set out by the World Health Organization (WHO), a new Monash University study has found.

The study found that 43% of products exceeded recommended limits for sugar, and only 23% of food products specifically promoted as suitable for infants and toddlers met all nutrient content requirements as outlined by the WHO.

In 2023, commercial baby food sales in Australia — including prepared baby food, cereals and snacks — generated over $370 million in revenue.

According to lead author Dr Alexandra Chung, from the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food at Monash University, one in two Australian children aged up to five years consumes commercial infant and toddler foods one or more days per week.

“At the same time, commercial infant and toddler foods represent a growing segment of the grocery market, with increasing numbers of new products launched onto the market,” Chung said.

Labelling and promotion

Published in the journal Public Health Nutrition, the study also found that none of the 45 products assessed met all of the labelling or promotional requirements as outlined by the WHO and all products assessed included at least one promotional marketing claim that was not permitted under the WHO guidelines.

The marketing claims give parents the perception that these products are healthy, when in fact they are often high in sugar and do not offer the variety of textures and flavours that children need.

The study assessed commercial foods for infants and toddlers available in Australian supermarkets for compliance with the WHO Regional Office for Europe’s Nutrient and Promotion Profile Model (NPPM), which supports appropriate promotion of food products for infants and young children aged 6–36 months. The study sample consisted of 45 items sold for babies and toddlers in Australian supermarkets.

Regulations

In Australia, compositional and labelling requirements of foods are regulated by the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. The standard for foods for infants outlines limits on sugar and sodium, and minimum iron content in cereal-based foods, as well as labelling requirements, including age recommendations and vitamin and mineral content claims.

However, many of the claims commonly made on infant and toddler foods are not regulated under the Food Standards Code, according to Chung.

“This includes claims that make appeals to health and promote the product as ideal for young child feeding, such as ‘natural’, ‘organic’, ‘no nasties’, ‘no preservatives’ and ‘for tiny hands’,” she said.

“There is a distinct gap in the current regulation of commercial foods for infants and toddlers that allows manufacturers to influence children’s diets through the promotion of these products.”

The study is timely given the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care recently held a public consultation on improving commercial foods for infants and young children.

According to Chung, this consultation “presents an important opportunity for the government to implement comprehensive, mandatory regulation that improves the composition, and ensures accurate labelling and honest promotion, of commercial foods to protect the health of Australia’s youngest children”.

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