New Delhi:- To curb the increasing obesity and serious diseases in the country, the Central Government can now take strict steps against Highly Processed Food Products (UPF) i.e. junk food. The Economic Review 2025-26 presented in Parliament has suggested that there should be a complete ban on advertisements of products like burgers, pizza, noodles and cold drinks from 6 am to 11 pm.

Time Slot Ban: Junk food advertisements should not be shown on TV and digital media from 6 am to 11 pm.
Strictness on baby food: A strict ban on misleading advertisements of milk and beverages for small children has also been recommended.
Front-of-pack labeling: It is recommended that warnings and nutritional information be clearly displayed on the front of the pack.
Junk food market increased 40 times in India
The review figures are scary. India has become one of the fastest growing markets in the world in terms of sales of UPF products…

Market boom: Its retail sales in 2006 were $900 million, which increased 40 times to $38 billion by 2019.
Risk of diseases: This market grew by 150% between 2009 and 2023, resulting in almost doubling of obesity in men and women.
learning from international examples
India is now considering following the path of countries like Britain, Norway and Chile. Recently Britain has banned junk food advertisements on TV and online platforms before 9 pm. According to the review, the lack of clear definition of ‘health’ or ‘energy’ claims in the Advertising Code and CCPA guidelines in India is a major policy loophole which is being exploited by companies.

Policy Steps for Healthy Diet
The Economic Survey makes it clear that changing consumer behavior alone will not suffice. For this…

Regulation of production: There should be strict rules for UPF production.
Local and sustainable diet: Traditional and healthy eating habits should be promoted.
Transparency: Clear nutrient limits should be set for advertisers.

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