A new Australian study has revealed that the majority of commercial snack foods for babies and toddlers are ultra-processed, overly sweet, and fail to meet nutrition standards.
The study found that these snack foods make up almost one third (31%) of all packaged baby and toddler foods in the supermarket. 63% of these foods met the classification of ‘ultra-processed’ – often made up of artificial additives and lacking whole foods.
Concerningly, less than 20% of them met all international recommendations for nutrition, and the vast majority (77%) were sweet rather than savoury, reinforcing young children’s preference for sugary tastes, and setting them up to prefer sugary foods in the future.
A further 71% had a dissolvable texture, making foods easy to overconsume and preventing children from building essential motor skills like chewing.
One of the authors of the study, Public Health Dietitian Alison McAleese says that nutrition during the early years is essential for children’s ongoing health.
“The first 1000 days of a child’s life is crucial to their development and long-term health. During this time their brains and bodies are growing faster than any other time in their lives. What young children need are nutritious foods like fruits, vegetables and grains, not ultra-processed snacks.”
McAleese added that the high proportion of sweet snack foods is a particularly concerning finding.
“Not only does consumption of these sweet snacks encourage children’s preference for sugary foods, but we know from previous research that already over half of Australian 2–3-year-olds are exceeding the recommended intake of free sugars.”
Food for Health Alliance Executive Manager, Jane Martin says that this new research confirms that more needs to be done to regulate the booming baby and toddler snack food industry.
“These findings paint a picture of a growing industry-driven snack culture that prioritises sugar, excess consumption and convenience over nutrition, and sets our children up to develop unhealthy eating habits from their first bite.
“Australia’s baby and toddler snack food market is a multi-million-dollar industry, government intervention is needed to ensure profits don’t come at the expense of children’s health.”
The commercial infant and toddler industry in Australia generated over AUD $750 million in revenue in 2024, with the snack food segment accounting for $83.57 million.
There are currently only limited regulations about the composition and labelling of foods for babies in Australia, and none specifically for toddler foods, however earlier this year Food Ministers gave the standard setter, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), the green light to progress regulations in this area.
“We welcome recent action from governments to progress regulations around baby and toddler foods. It is essential that FSANZ now prioritises strict rules to stop the flood of ultra-processed snacks that undermine healthy eating in early childhood” Ms Martin added.
Food for Health Alliance are calling for comprehensive regulations to the composition and marketing of baby and toddler foods, including:
- No snacks on the market for babies. These are not recommended under infant feeding guidelines.
- Snacks for toddlers should align with global health recommendations and not be marketed as part of everyday diets.