- Choice Consumer Group has named and shamed Nestlé Milo in the annual Shonky Awards for worst products of the year.
- Despite being 46 per cent sugar, the product advertises a 4.5 Health Star Rating. But only if you drink it with skim milk.
- Is it time we ditched the Health Star Rating altogether?
After last year’s Shonky Awards slammed Arnott’s Tiny Teddies for made up “approved” canteen labels and Coca-Cola for secretly funding their own science, we didn’t know how this year’s “winners” would top it.
But they did – in part, thanks to Nestlé Milo. CHOICE Consumer Group blasted the “delicious malted chocolate sugar dirt” for displaying a 4.5 Health Star Rating, despite containing 46 per cent sugar (and more than two teaspoons of sugar per 20g serve).
So, how did they score so highly? The rating only applies when you consume it with 200ml skim milk. Rather ridiculously, a CHOICE survey found only 13 per cent of Aussies drink Milo with skim milk. 55 per cent consume it with full-fat milk, earning a 2.5 stars (this rating also makes NO sense, as the science shows dairy fats can actually be beneficial). Milo itself is a paltry 1.5 stars.
The whole debacle just harkens back to anti-sugar crusader David Gillespie’s comments at last week’s What Should I Eat? Forum: “The higher the Health Star Rating, the more corrupt the food company.” With products like UP&GO also scoring twice as high as full-fat milk, we’d nominate the Health Star Rating system for a Shonky of its own.
Are you shocked at Milo’s tactics? What other products should we name and shame?
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