India’s growing UPF market is leading to an uncontrolled and unregulated junk food epidemic. Governments are responsible for providing public goods, and health is a most vital public good, especially when it concerns children. In their relentless pursuit of profit, the UPF and sugary beverage industries have systematically compromised children’s health, prioritizing financial gain over their social and ethical responsibility. The major players in the Indian UPF and sugary beverages industries include both MNCs and Indian companies: PepsiCo India (Producer of Lay’s, Kurkure, Doritos, Quaker, and sugary beverages like Pepsi and 7Up); Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages (Coca-Cola, Thums Up, Sprite, Maaza, Limca), Parle Agro Ltd.

(Frooti, Appy Fizz), ITC (Bingo chips, Sunfeast), Nestlé India (Maggi and other instant noodles and a host of packaged foods), as well as many others like Mondelez India, Britannia Industries, McCain India, Hindustan Unilever, Dabur, Marico etc. Their total annual turnover from packaged food and beverages would exceed Rs 1 lakh crore (US$11 billion), the contribution of UPFs being unknown. They employ an estimated 80,000 direct employees, while according to a Deloitte-FICCI report released in May 2025, the Indian food-processing sector (which includes packaged foods, dairy, beverages, meat, fruits and veg processing, etc.) is estimated to be valued above US$300 billion, supporting over 7 million jobs across the value chain, including manufacturing, farm-linkage, distribution, retail, informal and secondary employment.

Advertisement

They include, besides the above major companies, hundreds of thousands of small and medium food processors and micro food units, plantation and farm labour, distribution/sales staff, and retail / street vendors/grocery shops. An overwhelming majority of them would not have the infrastructure and investments necessary for producing UPFs, which therefore would account for a miniscule part of the total food processing industry, both in terms of turnover and employment, though their contribution to the profits of large companies would be disproportionately higher and earned at the cost of irreparable damage to the health of people, especially children. UPFs represents a ticking time bomb of lifestyle diseases and health expenditures and banning them would not cost us much in terms of growth or employment compared to the benefits that would accrue in terms of national........

© The Statesman