Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India

The rising consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and paid food away from home (FAFH) is a growing concern for developing countries like India, which face the double burden of persistent malnutrition and increasing obesity. This paper examines the trends and drivers of UPF and paid meal consump...

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Autores principales: Gupta, Manavi, Kishore, Avinash
Formato: Artículo preliminar
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: International Food Policy Research Institute 2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/173891
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author Gupta, Manavi
Kishore, Avinash
author_browse Gupta, Manavi
Kishore, Avinash
author_facet Gupta, Manavi
Kishore, Avinash
author_sort Gupta, Manavi
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description The rising consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and paid food away from home (FAFH) is a growing concern for developing countries like India, which face the double burden of persistent malnutrition and increasing obesity. This paper examines the trends and drivers of UPF and paid meal consumption in rural and urban India from 2014 to 2019. Using high-frequency household consumption survey data, we estimate the expenditure elasticity of these food categories. Our results show a significant increase in the consumption of UPFs and paid meals over the study period. The expenditure elasticity of both UPF and FAFH exceeds 1 on average, indicating that they are highly responsive to income growth. Notably, poorer and urban households display higher elasticities compared to wealthier and rural households. Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition reveals that rising incomes and evolving dietary preferences contribute to the increase in UPF and paid meal consumption. These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions to promote healthier food choices, especially among lower-income groups, as India's economy continues to grow.
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spelling CGSpace1738912025-11-06T05:37:03Z Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India Gupta, Manavi Kishore, Avinash agricultural transformation agrifood systems military operations politics value chains The rising consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and paid food away from home (FAFH) is a growing concern for developing countries like India, which face the double burden of persistent malnutrition and increasing obesity. This paper examines the trends and drivers of UPF and paid meal consumption in rural and urban India from 2014 to 2019. Using high-frequency household consumption survey data, we estimate the expenditure elasticity of these food categories. Our results show a significant increase in the consumption of UPFs and paid meals over the study period. The expenditure elasticity of both UPF and FAFH exceeds 1 on average, indicating that they are highly responsive to income growth. Notably, poorer and urban households display higher elasticities compared to wealthier and rural households. Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition reveals that rising incomes and evolving dietary preferences contribute to the increase in UPF and paid meal consumption. These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions to promote healthier food choices, especially among lower-income groups, as India's economy continues to grow. 2025-03-26 2025-03-27T12:40:05Z 2025-03-27T12:40:05Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/173891 en Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Gupta, Manavi; and Kishore, Avinash. 2025. Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India. IFPRI Discussion Paper 2330. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/173891
spellingShingle agricultural transformation
agrifood systems
military operations
politics
value chains
Gupta, Manavi
Kishore, Avinash
Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India
title Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India
title_full Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India
title_fullStr Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India
title_full_unstemmed Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India
title_short Guilty pleasures: Expenditure elasticities of ultra-processed foods and paid meals in India
title_sort guilty pleasures expenditure elasticities of ultra processed foods and paid meals in india
topic agricultural transformation
agrifood systems
military operations
politics
value chains
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/173891
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