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A look at the dietary patterns followed by Indians among States/UTs

Food diversity: Indians follow different diets according to the region they come from

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There is a wide variety of dietary patterns and cuisines across different regions and States of India. With the variation in landscapes and soil, the cultivation patterns of a region affect the food consumption habits of people. So what do Indians eat or rather what types of food do people from different States prefer? 

Data from the fourth and fifth editions of the National Family and Health Survey (NFHS) show how the dietary habits of people vary across States.

Leafy greens and fruits

India is home to different indigenous varieties of spinach and fruit. Leaves of moringa, turmeric, fenugreek etc. are part of Indian cuisine across various States. Daily, more than 50% of Indians, irrespective of gender, consumed leafy green vegetables in 2019-21. Out of this, Odisha ranked the highest, with about 90% of people in the State consuming dark green leafy vegetables daily, according to NFHS-5. Odisha saw a 10% increase in leafy green consumption from the 2015-16 (NFHS-4) period. In 2015-16, among women, Sikkim ranked the highest, with 84.9% of them eating leafy greens daily, while among men, Odisha was leading with 79.8%. Telangana ranked the lowest among consumption of leafy greens by men, according to NFHS-5. The consumption of green leafy vegetables among women in Tamil Nadu was almost 60% in 2015-16, which came down to 10.6% in 2019-21. The east, northeast and central States led the ranking in terms of daily consumption of leafy vegetables.

The diversity of fruits in India has made it an important part of our daily diet, especially in the western, northern and southern States. About 12% of the population consumed fruits daily. Weekly, while 37% of women ate fruits, the share went up to 44% among men. Goa ranked the highest in 2019-21 among both men and women, with a share of 30.2% and 44.5%, respectively, eating fruits in their daily diet. This being said, the share decreased from the 2015-16 period. Daily consumption of fruits was the lowest in States like Nagaland, Odisha and Jharkhand during both periods, with only 5% or less eating fruits daily.

Meat, fish, eggs and dairy

Data from NFHS-5 show that in over half of the 29 States/UTs analysed, more than 90% of the population consumed fish or chicken or meat daily or weekly or occasionally. In 25 of them, the figure was more than 50%. In none of the States/UTs was the share less than 20%. In terms of daily consumption, Kerala ranked first, with 51% and 57% of men and women, respectively, consuming fish or chicken or meat. While the consumption among women came down 7% points from 2015-16, it increased by almost 2% among men. Notably, in States like Punjab and Haryana, consumption of meat was less than 1.5% during both periods, ranking the lowest among States. In general, Kerala, Goa, West Bengal and most northeastern States had a higher share in meat consumption. Fish consumption was the highest among the coastal States of Kerala and West Bengal. 

Eggs, an additional food supplement provided as part of the mid-day meals in more than 15 States/UTs in India, are also a staple in many Indian households. In 15 States, more than 90% of the population consumed eggs daily or weekly or occasionally. Among men, Goa ranked on top in terms of daily consumption, with 21.5% eating eggs in 2019-21. At 16.2%, Tamil Nadu ranked the highest among women during the same period. There was a significant increase in the share of people consuming eggs from 2015-16 — a 13.7% points increase among men and a 4.8% points increase among women. In Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, the share of men, as well as women eating eggs, was less than 2% each.

Be it tea, coffee or energy drinks, Indians drink milk regularly. Curd is another staple that has an important place in the Indian kitchen, especially during summers. Consumption of milk or curd is the highest in southern States as well as the cow belt in India. With more than 80% of women consuming milk or curd daily, Tamil Nadu had the highest rank in 2019-21. There was a rise of 4.6% points in women’s consumption of the product from 2015-16. Milk or curd consumption saw a decrease of 1.8% points among men in Haryana from 2015-16, the State ranked on top in milk/curd consumption. And though there was an increase from 2015-16, Mizoram ranked at the bottom during both periods as men and women each consumed less than 15% of milk/curd.

Check out this story to understand more about India’s meat-eating patterns

Pulses and beans

India is home to a broad variety of pulses and beans. It is one of the main sources of protein in the Indian diet and is a staple consumed regularly. Close to 50% of the population ate at least one variety of lentils or beans daily. Among men, Odisha ranked first with 78.7% of them consuming pulses daily, an increase of 11.5% points from the previous edition of the survey. With 79.5% of its women having pulses or beans every day, Himachal Pradesh ranked first among the gender — an increase of 7.6% points from 2015-16. Northeastern States of Mizoram and Nagaland were at the bottom of the list among men and women, respectively. Assam, Bihar, and Sikkim were among the other States that ranked high on the list. Notably, Karnataka which ranked 77.7%, the highest among women in 2015-16, went down to 75.5% in the latest edition, though it was the highest-ranking southern State in terms of pulse consumption.

Junk food and drinks

Increasingly, with a fast-paced lifestyle, fried food and aerated drinks have become a part of our daily food consumption, with home-cooked meals not being an option for many. Weekly, while 12.9% of women in India drank aerated juices in 2019-21, the share went up to 20.9% among men. This share was less than 5% for men and women in terms of daily intake of carbonated drinks. In 2019-21, more than 35% of both men and women each consumed fried food every week. Daily consumption remained below 10% during NFHS-5. 

With 22.2% of men drinking carbonated drinks, Goa ranked first in daily aerated drink consumption among men in 2019-21. Notably, Jammu & Kashmir which ranked second in the list only had 9.6% of its men drinking aerated juices daily. Women’s consumption of carbonated drinks was relatively lower, with less than 10% consuming it daily in Assam, the State that ranked on top of the list.

Daily consumption of fried food was highest among the Mizo people, with about 80% of the population, irrespective of gender, eating fried food in 2019-21. But, there is a general decrease in the consumption of fried food when compared to 2015-16.

Fortnightly figures

• 4.95% Is the wholesale price-based inflation in December 2022, decelerating to a 22-month low, mainly due to a fall in prices of food articles, such as vegetables, on easing supply side pressure and a higher base of last year. This is the seventh straight month of declining Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation. It was 5.85% in November 2022 and 14.27 per cent in December 2021.
• 61.2% The sharp sequential rise in capital spending by the Central and State governments, lifting fresh investment plans announced in the third quarter (Q3) of 2022-23 to ₹7.1 lakh crore, even though private sector investments dropped 41% from ₹6.31 lakh crore in Q2 to ₹3.71 lakh crore between October and December 2022.
• 5.72% India’s retail inflation in December 2022 — keeping it below the central bank’s 6% tolerance threshold for the second straight month after a ten-month streak above it. A steep 15.1% fall in vegetable prices in December 2022 drove down India’s retail inflation. There was, however, little relief beyond vegetables as inflation in food items such as cereals, milk, and spices accelerated further to 13.8%, 8.5% and 20.3%, respectively.
• 40% of India’s total wealth is owned by the richest 1% of the country, while the bottom half of the population together share just about 3% of the wealth, a new study by Oxfam International revealed. Releasing the India supplement of its annual inequality report at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, the organisation said that taxing India’s 10-richest at 5% could fetch funds to bring all children back to school.
• 6.6% India’s economic growth rate in the next financial year from 6.9% in 2022-23, according to the World Bank’s latest projection. India, however, is expected to be the fastest-growing economy of the seven largest emerging-market and developing economies (EMDEs), it said. The growth rate in FY23 compares with 8.7% in the previous year. For 2024-25, the growth rate is projected at 6.1%.

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