India takes battle against junk food to shops near schools

India is moving closer to new regulations to restrict the sale of foods high in fat and sugar within a 50-metre radius of schools, the latest proposal to cut the consumption of junk food in a country battling growing rates of obesity, especially among children.

The rule would impact family-run stores, restaurants and food stands selling everything from sugary soft drinks and salty chips to greasy samosas and fatty pizzas or burgers close to India's 1.5 million schools.

Also read: Make junk food costlier, tighten school canteen rules: Five steps ICMR suggests to curb childhood obesity


It could prove another hurdle for multinationals such as PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Mondelez and Nestle, which already face proposed rules to put red warning labels on products high in fat, salt and sugar (HFSS), bringing India into line with markets such as Chile and Mexico that have tougher food safety regulations.

Some Indian businesses and grocery shop owners near schools are already fretting. In Bhubaneswar city in eastern India, a dozen shopkeepers said sales could drop by a third or more.

At one shop, 15-year-old Priyanshu Palei bought two packets of PepsiCo's popular Uncle Chipps, stuffing them into his backpack on the way to class. "I will have these during recess," he said, preferring them over his mother's packed lunch of rice and lentil stew.

That's the habit India wants to break.

Rajit Punhani, the chief executive of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, which is driving the changes, said the "safe food" schools plan aimed to steer children away from unhealthy habits early on.

"We have to discourage children from having these. We have to inculcate this habit," he told Reuters. "It will not have an impact on businesses in a major way. Shop owners can sell non-HFSS foods," he added, saying regulations are aimed at nudging companies to reformulate recipes.

There is no fixed timeline for the law, first proposed in 2020. Amid a nationwide food safety crackdown, the authority in August published thresholds for fat, salt and sugar content that would trigger restrictions on sales near and inside schools, inviting public feedback until October 6.

CHILD OBESITY SURGING IN INDIA

In recent years, products ranging from Lay's chips to Cadbury chocolates and Maggi noodles have grown in popularity. Some Indians with lower incomes view buying foreign brands as a mark of an improving lifestyle, while also being drawn by cheap prices. In 2023, Domino's launched its cheapest pizza in the world in India, selling for just 49 rupees (50 US cents).

As diets changed, the number of Indian children aged 5-19 deemed overweight or obese has also climbed. From 28 million in 2015, it surged nearly 50% to 41 million by 2025 and will touch 56 million by 2040, World Obesity Federation data shows.

While India's federal law aims to block near-school shops from selling and advertising HFSS products only to schoolchildren, the western state of Maharashtra, home to Mumbai, has taken a stricter approach - no shop within 50 metres of schools can carry such products, state food safety commissioner Tukaram Mundhe told Reuters.

"There will be hundreds of such shops near schools. How will one regulate if they are selling to schoolchildren or not? Shops cannot stock these items," said Mundhe.

State data accessed by Reuters showed inspectors have so far found violations at 133 shops within 50 metres of schools, and ordered 51 to discontinue their business.

INDUSTRY WOES

The Confederation of Indian Food Trade and Industry is concerned, saying compliance would be difficult as many schools are close to congested markets serving the general public, according to its confidential draft submission made to respond to the proposal, and reviewed by Reuters. The trade group did not respond to queries.

The law can cause "loss of business and livelihood," the document said, arguing restrictions should only apply inside schools.

Also read: Maharashtra FDA seizes food items worth lakhs in statewide crackdown on gutkha, milk products, sweets

Asked about the schools proposal, PepsiCo, which owns Lay's, referred Reuters to its global policy which limits what products it allows to be sold in schools. Nestle, which makes Maggi noodles, said it follows its global policy which only allows the sale in primary and secondary schools of products that meet specific nutrition criteria.

Coca-Cola and Mondelez, owner of Cadbury, did not respond to Reuters queries.

Rahul Khanna, a food regulations specialist at Indian law firm RAKLaw, said there was a "wave of concern" among his firm's clients, especially confectionery makers for whom children are an "important consumer segment". He did not name the clients.

Around the world, five countries have proposed or implemented sale restrictions around schools, while 48 have restricted junk food sales inside schools, according to researchers at the University of North Carolina.

In 2016, Chile imposed new rules on warning labels and prohibited the sale and promotion of junk food in schools. A Lancet study this year said that 18 months of exposure to the law saw a 2.85% lower probability of excess weight among girls, and 2.4% among boys.

The law also pushed manufacturers to reformulate recipes of many products in Chile.

"If the law were ineffective and consumers did not change their behaviour, producers would not push back," said Guillermo Paraje, a professor at Adolfo Ibanez Business School in Chile.

"They know the law will make them reformulate as much as they can."