Dr Arun Gupta, co-author of the Lancet series, said, “This new analysis simply confirms what The Lancet Series on Ultra-Processed Foods and Human Health, warned a few weeks back. India’s food environment is now dominated by UPFs, the industrial food products that put children and young people at risk of obesity, diabetes and other NCDs.”
“When half the packaged food items on quick-commerce platforms are UPFs or HFSS, it is no longer a question of individual choice. It reflects a food system where unhealthy products are made cheap, convenient and aggressively marketed, while healthier foods are pushed to the margins,” said Dr Gupta, who is the Convenor of Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPi), a national think tank on nutrition.
He further said that the study found that nine out of 10 parents wanted a clear RED identifier of unhealthy food products. “The FSSAI must take that signal seriously. It has been long that policy on Front of the Pack label (FOPL) is waiting. It is an essential public-health measure, not an optional one. The longer we delay, the more difficult it will be to halt the rising burden of obesity which the government of India promised by 2025,” he told this paper.
According to Sachin Taparia, the founder of LocalCircles, they had conducted a survey in 2023, which found that seven in 10 Indian consumers wanted all packaged HFSS foods to carry a FOPL, which is red in colour, so that it is easily understandable and could help consumers make informed choices.
Taparia said the survey was also flagged to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), but nothing has been done so far.
“Our latest survey found that consumers, especially parents of high school and college-going youth in urban India, have been expressing their concerns about regular and excessive ordering of ultra-processed foods via eCommerce and quick commerce platforms,” Taparia told this paper.
“With effective identification as demanded by parents and increased consumer awareness, an increasing number of food manufacturers are likely to start developing healthier versions of biscuits, chips, chocolates, juices, etc., and the same platforms will be able to present these healthier variants to consumers,” added Taparia.
The Economic Survey 2024-25 also highlighted the alarming rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in India, directly linking them to the rapid increase in UPF consumption. It said that 56.4% of the total disease burden of India is attributed to unhealthy diets - a point also highlighted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Gen Z is hooked on junk food and regularly order from popular online app to purchase ultra-processed foods (UPFs) like soft drinks, juices, biscuits, cakes, ice creams, candies, chips, and noodles, said a latest survey, which found that alarmingly one in two packaged food items listed on quick commerce platforms in India is high on fat, sugar and salts (HFSS).
The survey findings come in the wake of the Lancet series, which said the rise of UPFs in human diets is damaging public health and fuelling chronic diseases from obesity, diabetes, and cancer globally.
The survey, which received over 24,000 responses from parents of Gen Z across 277 districts of India, also found that eight online sites, including Blinkit, Zepto, Swiggy Instamart, Jiomart, and other quick commerce platforms, have over 40% of their packaged food listings as UPFs or with HFSS content.
Also, as many as 9 in 10 parents of Gen Z said that identifying HFSS foods with a red bar will lead to healthier choices, the survey by LocalCircles, India's leading community social media platform, said.
It also said that 39% of households that shop online shared that Gen Z in the family regularly buys packaged UPFs or HFSS foods via e-commerce/quick commerce apps.
The survey found that among eight online sites, Blinkit has 62% products that fall in the HFSS foods category; Zepto has 58% of products in this category, Swiggy Instamart has 54% such products, Jiomart has 50%, BigBasket 49% of its products are in this category, Milkbasket 48%, Amazon Fresh 44%, and Flipkart Minutes 42% in this category.
Dr Arun Gupta, co-author of the Lancet series, said, “This new analysis simply confirms what The Lancet Series on Ultra-Processed Foods and Human Health, warned a few weeks back. India’s food environment is now dominated by UPFs, the industrial food products that put children and young people at risk of obesity, diabetes and other NCDs.”
“When half the packaged food items on quick-commerce platforms are UPFs or HFSS, it is no longer a question of individual choice. It reflects a food system where unhealthy products are made cheap, convenient and aggressively marketed, while healthier foods are pushed to the margins,” said Dr Gupta, who is the Convenor of Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPi), a national think tank on nutrition.
He further said that the study found that nine out of 10 parents wanted a clear RED identifier of unhealthy food products. “The FSSAI must take that signal seriously. It has been long that policy on Front of the Pack label (FOPL) is waiting. It is an essential public-health measure, not an optional one. The longer we delay, the more difficult it will be to halt the rising burden of obesity which the government of India promised by 2025,” he told this paper.
According to Sachin Taparia, the founder of LocalCircles, they had conducted a survey in 2023, which found that seven in 10 Indian consumers wanted all packaged HFSS foods to carry a FOPL, which is red in colour, so that it is easily understandable and could help consumers make informed choices.
Taparia said the survey was also flagged to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), but nothing has been done so far.
“Our latest survey found that consumers, especially parents of high school and college-going youth in urban India, have been expressing their concerns about regular and excessive ordering of ultra-processed foods via eCommerce and quick commerce platforms,” Taparia told this paper.
“With effective identification as demanded by parents and increased consumer awareness, an increasing number of food manufacturers are likely to start developing healthier versions of biscuits, chips, chocolates, juices, etc., and the same platforms will be able to present these healthier variants to consumers,” added Taparia.
The Economic Survey 2024-25 also highlighted the alarming rise in non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in India, directly linking them to the rapid increase in UPF consumption. It said that 56.4% of the total disease burden of India is attributed to unhealthy diets - a point also highlighted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
