Over 62% of foods listed on Blinkit, 58% on Zepto are ultra-processed foods: Survey

Over the past few years, a familiar scene has been unfolding across the country: teenagers returning from school tapping their phones to order instant noodles, fizzy drinks, packaged snacks and ready-to-eat meals.

Cheap, hyper-palatable and endlessly convenient, these foods are fast becoming the default diet for a generation. According to a growing body of scientific evidence, they are quietly reshaping India’s health landscape.

Ultra-processed foods (UPFs), a category that includes packaged snacks, sweetened beverages, chocolates, instant noodles, ready-to-eat meals and many breakfast cereals, are no longer occasional treats.

A recent survey by LocalCircles has identified that at least one in two items listed on quick commerce platforms in India is junk or high in fat, sugar and salt (HFSS) or ultra-processed foods.

The analysis found that 62% of foods listed on Blinkit, 58% on Zepto and 54% on Swiggy Instamart are ultra-processed.

They have become daily staples for millions, especially young people. This shift is driving a surge in obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other chronic illnesses that India is struggling to contain.

The survey collected over 24,000 responses from parents across 277 districts, 39% reported that their children regularly order ultra-processed foods on quick-commerce apps.

Parents say the convenience of online platforms, where nearly half of all packaged foods listed are UPFs, makes resisting temptation difficult.

Soft drinks, biscuits, chips, instant noodles, chocolates and ice creams form the bulk of these orders.

What worries families even more is the lack of transparency. Nine in ten parents surveyed said a RED warning label on online listings, similar to those advocated for front-of-pack labels in stores, would help young users make healthier decisions.

But most apps offer no such identifiers. When asked by India Today about the dominance of ultra-processed foods on their platforms, companies like Blinkit, Zepto and Swiggy Instamart said they didn't want to



participate.

JUNK FOOD MAKING INDIA SICKER

Last year, India’s top medical research bodies, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), issued new dietary guidelines that were unusually blunt.

UPFs, they warned, are low in fibre, poor in micronutrients and typically loaded with sugar, salt and fat.

Their high palatability and low cost make them addictive, and their widespread availability ensures they reach even remote areas.

The guidelines stated: high UPF consumption is strongly linked with obesity, diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, and even accelerated ageing.

According to the Economic Survey this year, 56.4% of India’s disease burden can now be traced to unhealthy diets, a large portion of which comes from junk food.

But even as evidence mounts, India’s food regulator, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), has made little progress on implementing warning labels on high-fat, high-salt and high-sugar (HFSS) products.

JUNK FOOD MARKET EXPANDING

If the pandemic briefly slowed the country’s junk-food appetite, the recovery since has been swift.

A World Health Organisation- Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations analysis found a “V-shaped” rebound in UPF sales, spanning confectionery, salty snacks, processed beverages, convenience foods and cereals, with retail values climbing more than 10%.

India’s food environment, researchers say, is rapidly shifting toward a model dominated by packaged, branded, shelf-stable foods — often at the expense of traditional diets.

A sweeping synthesis by the Global Food Research Programme underscores the stakes: nearly every study ever conducted shows that high UPF consumption is linked with multiple health risks from obesity and type 2 diabetes to liver and kidney disease, cancer and premature death.

Their poor nutritional profile, combined with harmful additives and hyper-palatability, creates a cycle of overconsumption that is hard to break.