A KPMG report says 35.5 per cent of India’s population could not afford a healthy diet in 2025. Despite surplus food production, many people face nutritional gaps. Nikhil Sethi said, "The next challenge is ensuring that nutritious food is accessible, affordable and convenient for every citizen." Poor storage remains a concern.
KPMG report highlights that around 35.5 per cent of India's population cannot afford a healthy diet despite surplus food production.
Around 35.5 per cent of India's population, approximately 520.1 million people, could not afford a healthy diet in 2025, according to a report released by KPMG in India a few days ago.
The report, titled 'Future of Food Systems: Preparing for the Next Frontier', says that India's daily per capita food consumption remains approximately 20 per cent below prescribed requirements, despite food production being around 36 per cent above normative requirements.
"The challenge for India is not simply more production but ensuring that affordable and nutritious food reaches the right person, at the right place and time without placing an unsustainable burden on natural resources or farmers," the report said.
"The next challenge is ensuring that nutritious food is accessible, affordable and convenient for every citizen," Nikhil Sethi, partner and head, consumer markets, KPMG in India, said.
Food security and nutrition security are not synonymous, says the report. "A nation may produce sufficient food, but unless households can access and consume a balanced diet, nutritional deficits would persist."
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"While national food production exceeds normative dietary requirements, this availability has not translated into adequate nutritional outcomes."
In the context of inadequate storage and supply-chain infrastructure, India faces a cold-storage capacity deficit of 10-15 million metric tonnes (MT). Post-harvest losses are estimated at 6-15 per cent for fruits and 4.8-11.6 per cent for vegetables, the report says, citing a 2022 study commissioned by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI).
Significant regional concentration exists in cold-storage distribution, with Uttar Pradesh alone having 2,400 cold-storage facilities.
It accounts for 15.1 million tonnes of cold-storage capacity, representing more than 38 per cent of the total storage capacity in India, followed by West Bengal, Gujarat and Punjab. Several states in the Northeast and hilly regions, however, have fewer than five cold-storage facilities.
Rice and wheat abundance in the country carries hidden environmental costs, as exemplified by Punjab's groundwater extraction rate of 156 per cent. "Going forward, agricultural investments may need to be evaluated not only on their economic returns and production potential, but also on their environmental footprint."
The KPMG report also highlighted six key levers for the transformation of India's food ecosystem: productivity enhancement, food system efficiency, supply-chain excellence, transparency and traceability, technology enablement and sustainability-led growth.
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