Ruhi Shelke, a working professional in her early 20s, likes the banana chips from her favourite local chain, Hot Chips . “They make it hot and fresh right in front of my eyes,” she says. The outlet claims to be using sunflower oil, but the clear plastic packaging does not specify the amount of salt or sugar used, nor is there any supervision over the number of times the oil is reused for frying.
Weak regulation, lax government oversight, and low consumer awareness of the contents of packaged food means that the Indian ready-to-eat snacks market, worth Rs 50,000 crore, is putting the health of millions at risk, our reporting shows. “Rising consumption of ultra-processed foods increases the risk of health issues like diabetes, obesity and heart disease across all economic groups,” says Arun Gupta, convenor of Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest–India (NAPi), a Delhi-based think-tank. The problem is compounded by the fact that the ready-to-eat snacks market is populated by numerous unorganised and small producers, hard to track and check.
These producers cater to specific regional markets and preferences, and often operate within specific states or cities, according to a regulatory filing by Pratap Snacks, the company that makes ‘Yellow Diamond Chips’. In addition, the aggressive marketing of unhealthy ultra-processed foods--coupled with the rising costs of nutritious food, as IndiaSpend reported in August--has enhanced the need for stronger regulatory enforcemen.