Saturated fat, salt and sugar content labelled on back of food packaging not enough: India activists

NEW DELHI – India’s top food regulator recently proposed that manufacturers should state saturated fat, salt and sugar content in bold letters and larger font size on the back of food packages, but that has not made health and consumer rights activists in the country happy.

While describing it as a “miniscule” step forward, they say the new measure risks diverting attention from the urgent need for an easy-to-understand and emphatic front-of-the-pack labelling (FOPL) system to warn consumers about the unhealthy content of packaged food items.

This is a contentious issue that the regulator has delayed addressing.

In 2022, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) had proposed a star-based FOPL system to deter the increasing consumption of unhealthy processed food.

But the move was shelved following widespread opposition, including from activists who said such a system could instead mislead consumers by conveying “approval” for items high in sugar, salt and saturated fats.

Even a chocolate bar, for instance, could get stars for healthy ingredients such as fruit and nuts, masking its high sugar content.

While an FOPL system for India is still under examination, the FSSAI on July 6 came up with another proposal, asking food manufacturers to display information regarding total sugar, salt and saturated fat in “bold letters and relatively increased font size” on the back of their packaged food.

A 2020 rule already requires manufacturers in India to state the nutritional information of their products – including fat, salt and sugar – on their packaging, something that is conveyed in fine print on the back.

The latest proposal will soon be released for public feedback, after which it will come into force with changes, if any. FSSAI hopes the amendment will help “combat the rise of non-communicable diseases and promote public health and well-being”.

But Dr Arun Gupta, the convener of Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest, a think-tank that focuses on nutrition-related issues, told The Straits Times: “It should not be seen as if the FSSAI has done its duty (with this new proposal) and that this is all that is needed.”

He said an effective FOPL is more important, given that Indian consumers are bombarded regularly with misleading advertisements of packaged food and beverages.

He added that consumers in India are also exposed to “front-of-the-pack lies” that not only conceal the products’ high salt, sugar and fat content, but also position them as “desirable choices” with celebrity endorsements and visually appealing imagery.

“How many consumers will doubt all this and go to the back of the packaging and read labels?” he asked.

Sales of packaged processed and ultra-processed food have risen rapidly in India, across urban and rural areas, as well as socioeconomic groups.

The sale of ultra-processed food in India has risen from 2kg per capita in 2005 to 6kg in 2019, according to the 2019 Euromonitor Report. It was expected to rise to 8kg by 2024.

India has simultaneously witnessed a rapid growth in non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular ailments and diabetes, which account for around 63 per cent of all deaths.

The frequent consumption of packaged food, especially processed and ultra-processed food, along with a more sedentary lifestyle, has been linked to this increased disease burden.

Around 56.4 per cent of India’s total disease burden is attributed to unhealthy eating.

Since 2015, obesity rates in India have gone up from 20.6 per cent to 24 per cent among women, and from 18.9 per cent to 22.9 per cent among men.

The country’s diabetic population is also increasing. A 2023 study published in Lancet estimated that 101 million people in India – 11.4 per cent of the country’s population – are living with diabetes.

Yet, weak regulatory oversight has failed to restrict the promotion of processed and ultra-processed food, especially such food items marketed directly to children.

Concerns have also been expressed about the current limited reach of nutritional information that is displayed only in English in India, where Hindi and other languages are more widely spoken.

This has also added weight to demands for a simple and effective FOPL warning system accessible to different linguistic groups.

In 2016, Chile introduced a mandatory nutritional labelling system requiring all packaged food and drinks to display a black octagonal warning on the front, along with a message that says “high in” in Spanish if they exceed nutrient-specific thresholds.

This measure, along with restricted marketing and a ban on the sale or free distribution of ultra-processed products at schools, led to a decline in the consumption of products high in calories, sodium, sugar and saturated fat.

Singapore’s Nutri-Grade labelling scheme also enables consumers to better identify beverages that are lower in sugar and saturated fat. The system comprises colour-coded grades from A to D, with D denoting the highest sugar and saturated fat content.

The FSSAI move comes after the Hyderabad-based National Institute of Nutrition released a set of 17 dietary guidelines in May 2024 to reduce unhealthy eating among Indians.

Key advisories included minimising the consumption of food high in fat, sugar and salt, and restricting the intake of ultra-processed foods such as instant noodles and ready-made packaged meals.

Mr Harsh Gursahani, a food law and product compliance law partner at PLR Chambers, a legal firm based in Delhi, said giving nutritional information to consumers is a “laudable step”, but an FOPL system may not be the best option. 

“Some products will inherently have high fat, sugar or salt. For example, you cannot have chocolate without sugar,” he added, noting that “anything consumed in moderation is healthy”.

“The focus should be on a balanced lifestyle, not just on something as simple as an FOPL system,” he told ST.

“Balanced diet and regular exercise are required. Eating habits alone cannot make a difference.”