The National Heart Foundation of Australia today announced it will be ending its Tick licensing program in the takeaway food environment.

National CEO Dr Lyn Roberts reassured shoppers that the Tick retail program in supermarkets will continue unchanged.

“The Heart Foundation will never move away from its strong commitment for healthier food to be available for all Australians,” Dr Roberts said today.

“The challenge to improve our food supply has never been greater and we’ve never been more determined to help improve the food Australians eat,” she said.

“Today we’re announcing plans to undertake special investigations into the food available when eating out, because we think you have the right to know how much saturated fat is in your morning muffin and how much hidden salt is in your sandwich.

“We will make this information publicly available through quarterly audits on the foods Australians eat most often. We’ll turn the spotlight onto those establishments that promote themselves as providing healthy food to help keep them accountable to the community,” Dr Roberts said.

The Heart Foundation confirmed it would also continue to work with the Food and Health Dialogue – an Australian Government initiative. This group brings together government, industry and public health groups to set targets for food companies to reduce salt and saturated fat, and increase the fibre, wholegrain, fruit and vegetable content of commonly consumed foods. The Heart Foundation experience of running the Tick Program means our expertise in this area is invaluable.

“As part of that process, we’ll be calling on takeaway food chains to reduce the salt in bread used in their meals across Australia,” Dr Roberts said.

In some states the Heart Foundation has successfully lobbied to provide detailed information on menus as part of our commitment to help Australians make healthier choices, and we’ll also be fighting to ensure these improvements occur nationally.

“We’re proud of the work we’ve done and there are many important lessons from the five years we have operated the Tick in restaurants and takeaway stores,” Dr Roberts said.

The Heart Foundation Tick has been the sign of a healthier choice for Australians for more than twenty years. Takeaway meals with the Tick have been available for more than five years.

“We knew working in this area would be a bold move - and it was - but our work behind the scenes has seen massive improvements across the food supply chain, including healthier oils now being used in many takeaway and catering food outlets,” Dr Roberts said.

“This even led to a change in the type of canola grown by Australian farmers - which has helped ensure that healthier ingredients are available to the entire food industry. However, it’s time for us to broaden our efforts and work towards changes across the takeaway and catering sector.

“Our challenge is enormous.

• 2.7million Australians eat fast food every day

• Two out of three men and more than half of all women are overweight or obese and

• 46,000 Australians a year die from cardiovascular disease.

We must improve the way Australians eat urgently.

“One in five grocery buyers in Australia always have an item in their trolley with the Tick and more than half of them say they’d prefer a product with the Tick rather than a similar product without the Tick.

“Shoppers have been telling us that they trust the Tick to help them make better choices in the supermarket for more than twenty years, and we look forward to helping them for many more years to come,” Dr Roberts said.

Heart Foundation