New Delhi. Expressing serious concern over the increasing consumption of highly processed food products (UPF) high in fat and sugar, the Economic Survey has suggested considering banning advertisements of these products from morning to late night. Along with this, the Economic Review 2025-26 presented in Parliament on Thursday says that there is a need for strict restrictions on the marketing of milk and beverages used by infants and young children.
The economic review suggests putting nutritional information on the front of packets with warnings for foods high in fat, sugar and salt and reining in marketing targeted at children.
It also calls for ensuring that trade agreements do not undermine public health policies in any way. According to the review, India is one of the fastest growing markets for sales of highly processed food products.
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The increasing consumption of burgers, noodles, pizza and soft drinks, labeled as junk food, is leading to chronic diseases across the world and increasing health inequality. The Economic Survey projects the UPF market to grow by more than 150 percent between 2009 and 2023. Retail sales of UPF in India increased from $900 million in 2006 to about $38 billion in 2019, an increase of almost 40 times. During this period, obesity almost doubled in both men and women.
Promotion of healthy and sustainable diets
However, improving diets is not possible by changing consumer behavior alone. For this, coordinated policy measures related to the food system will have to be taken, which include regulation of UPF production, promotion of healthy and sustainable diets and control on their marketing.
For this, suggestions have also been made to ban advertisements of processed food products in all media from 6 am to 11 pm and to explore alternatives to ban marketing of milk and beverages for infants and young children. It cites the example of Chile where unified laws are in place, while advertising restrictions also exist in countries such as Norway and the UK.
Recently, Britain has also banned junk food advertisements on TV and online media before 9 pm to reduce the impact on children. -Economic Review
It has been recommended to make marketing restrictions of these products mandatory in digital media along with traditional mediums. According to the review, Rule 7 of the Advertising Code prohibits misleading or unhealthy advertisements, but lacks a clear, nutrient-based definition of 'misleading'.
ban on exploitation of children
Similarly, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA)'s 2022 guidelines prohibit exaggeration of health benefits and exploitation of children, but do not set clear nutrient limits. The Economic Survey says that this regulatory ambiguity is allowing companies involved in the business of processed food products to continue making vague claims such as ‘health’, ‘energy’ or ‘nutrition’, which is a significant policy flaw.
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