The removal of the 4.5 health star rating from Milo tins will help restore Australians' trust in the national labelling system, a food policy expert says.
Milo manufacturer Nestle announced on Thursday that it had agreed to remove the star rating from packaging until the federal government's review of the system was complete.
The company had been accused of misleading consumers about the nutritional value of the sugary drink.
Nutritionists, consumer advocates and health policy experts welcomed Nestle's decision, describing it as a "big win" for consumers.
Australia's peak consumer group Choice said the popular kids drink - which is made up of 50 per cent sugar - was only worth a 1.5 star rating at best.
Food policy expert Alexandra Jones, from the George Institute for Global Health, also praised the decision.
She says as long as products continue to display misleading health stars, of which there is a "small number", people won't trust the system.
"In our work we believe health stars does get it right most of the time," said Ms Jones.
A federal government review of the Health Star Rating system is currently underway, with findings due mid-next year.
Ms Jones says Nestle has pre-empted the outcome of that review.
"We think that is good because it's been a slow process," she said.
Nestle would be expected to display the appropriate star rating under the new guidelines, added Ms Jones.
Countries around the world are implementing food labelling systems in response to the obesity epidemic, and while they are no silver bullet they do work, Ms Jones said.
"The Milo example is one that has been noted since day one that just didn't make sense, that's why it is worth acknowledging that it's a good step in the fixes we need to make Health Stars better," she said.
The Obesity Policy Coalition (OPC) has called on other manufacturers to follow Nestle's example.
"Decisions like this will mean transparency for shoppers, particularly those who use the Health Star Rating System, and highlight that the product is not as healthy as they might have been led to believe," said Jane Martin, Executive manager of the OPC.
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