Double Standards: How Big Food Lobbied Against Health Warnings in India

NEW DELHI/LONDON – A can of Fanta purchased in London contains 63 calories. Purchase the same branded soda in India, and it carries three times the sugar content. Furthermore, the Indian version includes artificial dyes that, if sold in Europe, would require a prominent health warning on the packaging. In India, however, these additives are relegated to the fine print on the back of the can—a regulatory environment that multinational giants have spent years fiercely protecting.

As public health advocates push for stricter transparency, a heated conflict has emerged between government regulators, health activists, and some of the world’s most powerful consumer goods companies. The core of the dispute lies in the effort to mandate clear, front-of-pack nutritional warnings to combat rising obesity rates, an initiative that has faced significant pushback from the food industry.

A Regulatory Retreat

Despite initial momentum, India’s food-safety regulator, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), announced in August that it would abandon its push for “interpretive” labels—colorful, traffic-light-style warnings that highlight high levels of sugar, fat, and salt.

The regulator claimed such labels fail to account for the unique profile of Indian cuisine, which relies on more intense flavors. Instead, they proposed a simplified, black-and-white table format. This pivot followed a tense March meeting between regulators and industry executives, where representatives argued that warning labels were “confusing” and “ineffective.”

Leaked audio from the March 19 meeting reveals the industry’s stance. Mili Bhattacharya, a senior executive at Coca-Cola India, dismissed the necessity of icons, arguing that it is “very simplistic” to assume consumers who ignore existing ingredient lists would be influenced by a symbol. She further suggested that warning labels were unnecessary because Indian doctors effectively educate their patients on dietary risks.

The Global Hypocrisy

The industry’s stance in India stands in stark contrast to its practices elsewhere. Coca-Cola and its bottling partners have voluntarily adopted traffic-light-style labeling in nearly two dozen European markets, touting them as “clear and transparent” on their websites. Similarly, Nestle—a vocal member of the Indian industry lobbies fighting these regulations—has utilized such labels in the UK since 2013.

“The industry is incentivized to hold out for as long as possible, not informing the Indian public about the healthiness of the foods that they’re selling,” said Simone Pettigrew, head of food policy at the George Institute for Global Health. She noted that sustained lobbying has “almost paralyzed” Indian regulators from enacting higher standards.

Rising Public Scrutiny

With an estimated 450 million Indians at risk of being obese or overweight by 2050, the stakes are rising. The Indian Supreme Court is now scrutinizing the FSSAI’s decision after a petition from public health activists argued that greater transparency is essential for curbing poor dietary habits.

The public outcry is increasingly driven by social media influencers like Revant Himatsingka, known as “Food Pharmer.” With over 5 million followers, Himatsingka has gained prominence by highlighting the disparities between products sold in India and their counterparts in the West. His videos have compared the cocoa content in Indian KitKats to those in Australia and pointed out that many products, such as Maggi noodles, use cheaper palm oil in India while utilizing healthier sunflower oil in the UK.

These efforts have not gone unnoticed by corporations; several companies have filed legal complaints against influencers, with PepsiCo successfully obtaining a court order to take down a video criticizing the sugar content of its “Sting” energy drink.

A Shifting Market

While the industry continues to resist government-mandated labeling, shifting consumer behavior is forcing some concessions. In 2024, responding to years of activism, Nestle announced it would introduce sugar-free Cerelac baby food in India—a product line it had already offered in other markets for decades.

As India’s middle class becomes increasingly health-conscious, the demand for transparency is growing. Whether the Indian government will prioritize the health of its citizens over the lobbying power of multinational corporations remains a defining question for the nation’s public health policy.