Much is said about India suffering from hunger, with the country ranking 105th out of 127 nations in the Global Hunger Index. But the truth is that today, a large number of people in India are suffering less from wasting and more from the problem of obesity.
This is why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has appealed to the country’s people to reduce their use of edible oils by at least 10 per cent. He has warned that by 2050, 44 crore people in India could be living with obesity, which he described as the root cause of many diseases.
Health experts agree that obesity is linked to many serious conditions, including type-2 diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and stroke. In the five years between the National Family Health Surveys of 2015–16 and 2020–21, the share of women with obesity rose from 20.6 to 24 per cent, and among men from 18.9 to 22.9 per cent. In other words, about one-fourth of our population is suffering from obesity.
The problem of obesity is generally associated with lifestyle, including lack of physical activity and high consumption of fat (particularly edible oils), sugar, and salt. In the 1950s and 60s, India’s per capita consumption of edible oil was only 3.4 kg per year. Today, it has increased to 19.4 kg. This is much more than the 13 kg per person per year recommended by the World Health Organization, and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) recommendation of 12 kg.
It is worth noting that India’s population increased from 36.1 crore in 1951 to 142.8 crore in 2023. During this period, domestic production of edible oils rose from 13.8 lakh tonnes to 115.7 lakh tonnes.
But this only meets about half of the demand, leading to a sharp rise in imports—from negligible levels in 1951 to 164.7 lakh metric tonnes in 2022–23. When combined with domestic production, total availability of edible oils reached 278.7 lakh metric tonnes in 2022–23. According to my calculations, if national consumption of edible oils stayed within ICMR’s recommended limits, the current level of domestic production would be sufficient to meet most of the demand, and India’s import requirement would fall to just about 56.64 lakh metric tonnes.
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Why Edible Oil Mission matters for health
To make the country self-reliant in edible oils and reduce the burden on imports, the Government of India launched the Edible Oil Mission in October 2024. Under this scheme, an expenditure of Rs 10,103 crore will be made, and the production of primary oilseeds has been targeted to increase from 390 lakh tonnes in 2022–23 to 697 lakh tonnes over the next seven years. This is expected to reduce dependence on imports. And if the Prime Minister’s appeal to reduce oil consumption is also effective, then imports will decrease even more.
At the same time, consumption of inferior oils will also reduce.
Currently, 67.4 per cent of the edible oils produced in India are obtained from different primary oilseeds. Among these, mustard oil accounts for 33 percent of the total, groundnut oil for 25.4 per cent, and soybean oil for 19 per cent. The rest is made up of 5.1 per cent from coconut, 2.2 per cent from palm, 11 per cent from cotton seeds, 9.8 per cent from rice husk, 3.1 percent from solvent extraction of oilseeds, and 1.4 percent from forests and trees.
India’s traditional edible oils are considered good for health to a large extent. But due to our dependence on foreign countries, large quantities of other oils—often seen as harmful to health—have become common in the Indian market. Further, GM edible oils are also being imported, violating food safety laws.
Overall, 57 per cent of India’s total consumption of edible oils is fulfilled through imports—59 per cent of which comes from palm oil.
That palm oil is now a major part of our food chain is concerning. It can potentially increase harmful LDL cholesterol due to its high saturated fat content, which increases the risk of heart disease, obesity, and other health problems. But because it is cheap, its import is constantly increasing. While blending mustard oil has been banned in India since 2021, allegations of adulteration regularly surface. In this context, it would also be appropriate to give a rethink on the inclusion of palm oil in the Edible Oil Mission.
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Right advice at the right time
The advice given by Prime Minister Modi to reduce the use of edible oils in daily food is timely.
It has been seen that whenever the PM appeals to the public—whether it was about ending open defecation, maintaining cleanliness, getting vaccinated during Covid, or surrendering the gas subsidy—people respond seriously, and the country benefits.
Similarly, his advice to reduce edible oil consumption by 10 per cent is important not just for public health, but also for the health of the economy.
India’s population is expected to go beyond the 151-crore mark by 2030. If per capita oil consumption decreases by 10 per cent, and if the goals of the Edible Oil Mission—raising domestic production by 78 per cent from 114 lakh tonnes in 2022–23 to 203 lakh tonnes by 2030— are met, then its overall effect will be substantial.
Imports could fall from the current 164.7 lakh tonnes to just 60.7 lakh tonnes, a reduction of 63 per cent. The outflow of valuable foreign exchange would also decrease accordingly.
Along with this, reducing edible oil consumption would help address rising obesity. According to some estimates, the number of Indians affected by obesity could rise from one-fourth of the population to 44 per cent by 2030. Cutting back now could reduce disease, lower healthcare costs, and improve productivity.
Not only this, farmers, who currently struggle to get fair prices for oilseeds because of cheap palm oil imports, would also benefit. Better prices would encourage higher domestic production.
There is an urgent need to widely publicise the Prime Minister’s advice—for the sake of both the health of the people and the economy.
Ashwani Mahajan is a professor at PGDAV College, University of Delhi. He tweets @ashwani_mahajan. Views are personal.
(Edited by Asavari Singh)