How India eats

FOOD FOR THOUGHT NFHS4 report shows that daily food consumption has not changed much over last decade, but there has been a decrease in daily consumption of vegetables

How diverse is an average Indian’s diet? Has it changed in the last decade? Do people eat better in villages or cities? What is the most-preferred food for non-vegetarians in India? Do Bengalis eat fish more frequently than other communities in India? Does a difference in caste and religious background lead to significant differences in food habits? What is the effect of gender on food habits? Do women eat better diets during pregnancy? Are fried fooditems and aerated drinks more common in cities than villages?

Data from the fourth round of National Family and Health Survey (NFHS) provides some answers. The survey was conducted among six lakh households in 2015-16. According to the data, an average Indian family puts away almost half of its total spending on food items. District-level data for a wide variety of food items helps explain the food habits of Indians.

Almost half of urban Indians consume milk, pulses and green vegetables every day. Consumption of meat products on a daily basis is much lower. Less than 7% consume fish or eggs daily. For chicken and meat, the figure is less than 2%. Daily food consumption has not changed much over the last decade, the NFHS-4 report states, but there has been a decrease in the daily consumption of green vegetables, and an increase in the daily consumption of milk or curd.

NEW DELHI:

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