Govt denies crackdown on samosa, jalebi with ‘sugar, fats’ labels

DENYING reports that the Indian government had proposed to display ‘sugar, fats’ warning labels on popular food items such as samosa, jalebi, kachori, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) clarified on Tuesday, July 15, that the initiative was not to target India's rich street food culture but to towards “making healthier choices at workplaces.”

The ministry has also clarified that the advisory was about “display of boards in various workplaces…to raise awareness on harmful consumption of hidden fats and excess sugar in various food items.”

“These boards are meant to serve as daily reminders on fighting obesity, the burden of which is sharply rising in the country,” the government said, while denying the media reports as “baseless, misleading, and incorrect.”

Rejecting any targeting of the Indian snacks, it said, “The Health Ministry Advisory does not direct warning labels on food products sold by vendors and has not been selective towards Indian snacks.”

“It does not target India's rich street food culture.”

“The general advisory is a behavioural nudge to make people aware of hidden fats and excess sugar in all food products and not specifically to any particular food product. The Advisory mentions other health messages such as promoting healthy meals such as fruits, vegetables and low-fat options...”

Earlier in the day, some reports were doing rounds on social media that the Union Health Ministry had proposed to prominently display warnings indicating the amount of oil and sugar content in popular food items, such as pizzas and burgers, samosas, vada paav, kachori among others, in schools, offices, institutions in various departments/offices/autonomous bodies and organisations.

They said the snacks will carry cigarette-style warnings to highlight the hidden fat and sugar lurking in popular snacks.