Select Committee into the Obesity Epidemic in Australia A submission by Mars Australia July 2018 Executive summary Mars has been operating in Australia since 1915 and produces a range of sugar free, sugar and chocolate confectionery as well as a range of condiments, sauces, herbs and spices, meal makers, recipe bases, cooking and pasta sauces, marinades, gravies and rice. As a food company we know we have a role to play to ensure that our consumers have the best information about our products and the opportunity to make informed, healthy food choices. As such, at Mars Australia we have been voluntarily regulating our commercial activities for well over a decade. Our initiatives include: Since 2005 through to today we have been working on various parts of our product portfolio to remove saturated fat, salt and sugar; Our Mars Food range has made the commitment to adopt the Health Star Rating system with the logo now appearing on the 180 products to which HSR is relevant. Our work continues; In 2006 being a founding member in Australia of the ‘Be Treatwise’ front of pack labelling system for confectionery to make the product positioning as a ‘treat’ or ‘discretionary’ food clear; In 2007 we introduced a commitment not to advertise to children under the age of 12; Since 2009 we have been resizing our confectionery products and rice to assist in educating consumers on appropriate portion sizing and to assist with portion control; In 2012 we committed to no confectionery products greater than 250kCal and delivered this in 2017; We launched our Global Food Health & Wellbeing Ambition in 2016 committing to reductions in salt and sugar, to increase the number of shared meals and to increase the amount of fruit, vegetables and grains on Australian plates by increasing the number recommended for use in our on-pack recipes. This has added one million kilograms or 13.3 million serves of vegetables into the diets of Australians. In addition we committed to having a balanced portfolio of occasional and everyday foods. In 2016 following the World Health Organization’s (WHO) recommendation to limit added sugars in the diet, we introduced a commitment to not promote our products if the total sugar level of a bundle for immediate consumption exceeded 10% of the recommended daily intake of sugar; In 2017 we introduced a revised Nutritional Criteria for our Mars Food products based on four of the world’s most stringent criteria including the WHO and Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ). These criteria form the benchmark for our efforts to make our products healthier and we report on our progress against these criteria; As a responsible food manufacturer we take our obligations to our consumers and our community seriously. Within the framework of the product range we sell, we will continue to review our initiatives and to assess what more we, as food producers, can do to assist better community and public health outcomes. However we recognise that there is no single factor responsible, nor is there a single solution to the complex multifaceted problem of obesity. Obesity is a result of food choices and lifestyle choices with a range of other environmental and behavioral factors also contributing. We look forward to continuing to collaborate with government and other interested stakeholders to do our part to help deliver better health outcomes for Australians. Background Mars Australia welcomes the opportunity to make this submission to the Senate Select Committee Inquiry into the Obesity Epidemic in Australia. Mars is a family owned company, making food in Australia for over 100 years. At our Mars Food production facility in Wyong (NSW) we make over 580 products including MASTERFOODS®, DOLMIO®, KANTONG® and UNCLE BENS®. These ranges have been designed to help families have healthy, easy, affordable and tasty home cooked meals. Our Mars Wrigley Confectionery business operates from our plants in Asquith (NSW) and Ballarat (Victoria). We produce EXTRA™ sugarfree gum, ECLIPSE™ gum and mints, M&M’s®, MALTESERS®, MARS Bars®, SNICKERS® and SKITTLES™ among other brands. Treat foods have long held a place in most dietary traditions for hundreds of years across the world and Australia in 2018 is no different. Chewing gum has been produced by Mars Wrigley Confectionery in Australia since 1915 and Mars chocolates since 1964. Mars initiatives Product reformulation Mars commenced working on initiatives to improve the health aspects of our products in 2005 when we launched our 'Making Chocolate Better' commitment. This commitment aimed to improve the nutritional profile of our chocolate products by reducing the saturated fat content in our MARS® and MILKY WAY® Bars. Five years and 40,000 hours of research were spent in order to achieve our goal of reducing the saturated fat in MARS Bars® by 22%, MILKY WAY® by 19% and M&M’s® by 10%. In 2007 we commenced work on reducing salt and sugar across our food brand portfolio including the MASTERFOODS®, DOLMIO® and KANTONG® brands. Since then we have removed 400 tonnes of salt and 1000 tonnes of sugar from Australian plates. In 2016, we launched our Global Food Health & Wellbeing Ambition committing by 2021 to reduce sodium by an average of 20 per cent, expand our multigrain options so that 50% of all rice products include wholegrains and legumes and ensure all our tomato based cooking and pasta sauces in jars include a minimum of one serving of vegetables. So far we have added 1 million kg per year, or 13.3 million serves per year of vegetables to the diets of Australians. Today 72% of Mars Food’s global portfolio of products (by sales) meet the WHO’s recommendations for calories, added sugar, sodium and fats (as incorporated into the Mars Nutrition Criteria), and we’re on our way to ensuring close to 95% of our global portfolio meets the WHO targets by 20211. We report publically on our progress against our commitments, and our report can be found at Mars Food Health & Wellness Annual Report. 1 Mars Food. One Billion More Healthy Meals. 2017 Progress Report In 2016, we commissioned research on the physical and psychological benefits of sharing meals with family and friends. The report, ‘Lifting the Lid’, found that what happens over the plate is more important than the food on it: more than one-third of the 1500 respondents ate more nutritious meals when they ate with family and friends. To encourage families and friends to eat together, we focus on providing healthy, easy, affordable and tasty products, and with our busy lives to make dinnertime matter. Product Labelling In 2006 Mars Wrigley Confectionery co-founded the Be Treatwise front of pack labelling system in Australia for confectionery to make the product positioning as a ‘treat’ or ‘discretionary’ food clear to consumers. Today all chocolate and fruity sugar confectionery are labelled with the ‘Be Treatwise’ logo along with a front of pack energy icon. In 2012, we voluntarily removed all ‘fat free’ claims on our sugar confectionery to further make the treat nature of the product clear. Mars has also made the commitment to adopt the Health Star Rating (HSR) system, for MASTERFOODS®, DOLMIO®, KANTONG® and UNCLE BENS® products. Within these brands, 180 products meet the criteria for HSR labelling, and front-of-pack labelling began to appear from late 2017. We also include back of pack information panels so consumers can make an informed choice on what they are going to eat. Portion control With increasing evidence in the public domain about consumer misunderstanding of portion sizes and the importance of portion control in tackling obesity, Mars from 2009 commenced resizing our products to help educate consumers on appropriate portions for treat products and other foods. All our single serve chocolate bar lines have been reduced to 250 calories or less per portion, with a range of fun sized products of 100 calories also made available. Responsible Advertising Mars has its own Mars Marketing Code and in 2008, we were one of the first signatories to the voluntary Australian Food and Grocery Council’s (AFGC) Responsible Children's Marketing Initiative. Both of these codes commit not to advertise to children 12 years and under. Promotional commitment In May 2015, Mars announced we were supporting the WHO’s recommendation that people limit their sugar consumption to no more than 10% of their total energy intake, or 50g added sugar. In September 2016, Mars further committed that for its confectionery products it will no longer directly fund through trade spend any cross-promotion or bundle of treat foods intended for immediate consumption that exceeded the May 2015 WHO recommendation for added sugars. Sugar free product range Mars Wrigley Confectionery offers a range of sugar free products for those who would like something sweet but with low calorie content and no sugar. Marketed under the EXTRA™ and ECLIPSE™ brands, sugar free gum has well established dental health benefits that are recognized by the World Dental Federation (FDI). Sugar free mints, marketed under the ECLIPSE™ brand are also low in calories. In Summary We recognize that obesity is a complex and multifaceted issue resulting from behavioral and environmental factors including food choices, lifestyle factors, environment, food education and socio demographic nuances. As a conscientious food producer, for over 13 years Mars has voluntarily made and implemented multiple commitments to improve the way we make and market our product range so that Australians can continue to enjoy our products in an informed and responsible way, as part of a healthy diet. We look forward to continuing the conversation with government and other interested stakeholders to help develop a strategy that addresses all of the elements of this difficult societal and endemic health issue.