India Needs Mandatory A-to-E Food Grading as 30-Second Label Checks Expose Misleading Claims
Updated
Updated · The Hans India · Aug 22
India Needs Mandatory A-to-E Food Grading as 30-Second Label Checks Expose Misleading Claims
3 articles · Updated · The Hans India · Aug 22
Summary
India should require a mandatory front-of-pack nutritional grading system—modeled on Europe’s A-to-E Nutri-Score—to give shoppers an instant read on packaged foods sold as healthy.
Nutri-Score matters because front labels such as “multigrain,” “no added sugar,” and “made with real fruit” can mask products whose first ingredients are sugar, glucose syrup or refined flour.
FSSAI has discussed front-of-pack labeling reforms for years, but progress has been slow as industry resistance remains strong and current back-of-pack disclosures stay technically compliant yet hard to decode.
2023 showed the pressure transparency can create: Food Pharmer’s viral review of Bournvita’s sugar content triggered backlash after a legal notice and was followed by a quiet cut in sugar per serving.
For consumers—especially young Indians heavily targeted by health-focused marketing—the broader fix is policy plus nutrition literacy, starting with a 30-second habit of checking the first three ingredients and serving size.