Young India is snacking with purpose, not guilt

Health awareness, customers who are willing to spend and digital access is powering India's health food segment

- Tanisha Saxena

Around 6pm every day, after her work calls wrap, 28-year-old Sonia Sharma reaches for a cookie. But this isn't the buttery, processed kind she grew up sneaking from a tin box. It's dense, crumbly, made with whole wheat, ghee, jaggery—and a hint of ajwain and mulethi. "It tastes familiar, like something my grandmother might have made," she says. "But now it comes with a nutrition label and words like 'immune support' and 'digestive health.'"

Sharma, a marketing executive in Noida, is part of a rising wave of Indian consumers trading comfort snacking for functional eating. She still loves her evening chai, but the sev has been swapped for roasted makhana with sea salt and protein chips. "I don't count calories," she says. "I count how something makes me feel at 9pm—whether I'm sluggish, bloated, or fine." Her pantry now includes things like trail mixes, seed bars, and "calming" infusions with ashwagandha or brahmi. But the logic isn't just about trend or aspiration.

For Sharma—and millions like her—snacks are no longer guilty pleasures. They're mini-meals with purpose. "I wouldn't say I understand every ingredient," she admits. "But if it's got ghee and mulethi and says it's Ayurvedic? That's enough for me to give it a shot."

FROM STREET SNACK TO SUPPLEMENT

India's $10 billion packaged health food market is expected to nearly triple by 2026, according to a 2020 report titled India Unjunking: A USD 30 Billion Appetite for Health Food by Avendus Capital. At the core of this growth is an unlikely driver: snacks. With a 25.2% compound annual growth rate, healthy snacking—from trail mixes and fruit bars to savory, high-protein chips—is the fastest-growing segment. While health food penetration in the US stands at 31%, India's is just 11%, leaving ample room for expansion.