India Food Stats

I spotted the ingredient DVS on a pack of Dahi. I turned to Gemini to know more about it. Image: Open Food Facts On packaged curd or yogurt labels, DVS stands for Direct Vat Set (often accompanied by the phrase Active Culture or Starter Culture). DVS culture is specially formulated to provide desired flavors, mouthfeel, and sourness in curd. Key points: 1. It is a freeze-dried lactic culture designed for Direct Vat Set applications, ensuring consistent quality and flavor. 2. The culture can be customized based on customer requirements for acidity, texture, and flavor. 3. DVS cultures are phage-resistant, ensuring high-quality fermentation and consistent results in curd production. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) regulates dairy products by establishing standards for composition, quality, and safety. ‘Fermented Milk’ may be replaced with designations Dahi, Curd and Yoghurt if the product complies with the relevant provisions of FSSAI's Standards. If cultures...

Nutella is a popular cocoa and hazelnut spread made by Ferrero . It is 13% hazelnuts and primarily composed of sugar and palm oil (together exceeding 50% of the jar). The ingredients and their composition are shaped by local regulations and preferences in the countries where it’s available. According to Open Food Facts, common ingredients found in various formulations around the world include: Sugar Palm Oil Hazelnut Cocoa Skim Milk Powder Vanillin In most countries, Nutella uses soy lecithin as its emulsifier.  Ferrero sources around 25% of the world's hazelnut supply, largely from Turkey. In 2014, Ferrero acquired Oltan Group (Oltan Gıda), Turkey’s largest hazelnut exporter and a major processor/marketer at the time.

Alka-Seltzer was developed by Maurice Treneer and launched in 1931. It was marketed for relief of minor aches, pains, inflammation, fever, headache, heartburn, stomach ache, indigestion, acid reflux, and hangovers while neutralizing excess stomach acid. The original effervescent formula had aspirin as its main active ingredient. Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) is not required to produce the effervescent action of Alka-Seltzer; the effervescence is produced by the baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and citric acid reacting to form sodium citrate and carbon dioxide gas. citric acid + sodium bicarbonate → water + carbon  dioxide + sodium citrate The carbon dioxide bubbles are what cause the effervescence. The effervescent antacid and pain reliever brand is owned by Bayer since 1978. In 2017, Bayer decided to reformulate certain Alka-Seltzer effervescent products to remove the pain reliever, and related indications, in order to focus exclusively on occasional heartburn and upset stomach ...

Festivals in India are all about lights, laughter, and of course — gifts. The gifting game has evolved, and it’s fun to see how traditions mix with modern health trends. For decades, the safest bet was a box of assorted dry fruits and nuts. Almonds, cashews, pistachios, raisins — crunchy, classy, and guilt‑free.  Then came the avalanche of traditional sweet snacks — laddoos, barfis, jalebis, and syrup‑soaked delights — joined by foreign‑flavored themes like sugar‑loaded cookies and glossy boxed chocolates that feel more global than local. Tasty, yes. Waistline‑friendly? Not really. Everyone smiles when they receive them, but secretly wonders how much sugar they just signed up for. Now, healthier gifting is catching on. Imagine opening a festive box and finding an assortment of tea bags — Darjeeling, Assam, Tulsi green, or exotic herbal blends. It’s thoughtful and elegant. Image: Open Food Facts Health brands are hopping on the trend too. Protinex — usually seen as a serious high‑p...

Organic foods come from farming practices that focus on biodiversity, healthy soil, and chemical-free methods, all while taking an environmentally and socially responsible approach.  Tips for avoiding misleading “organic” claims from uncertified brands and identifying genuine organic products: 1.  Check the logo - Only certified organic foods can carry it. The FSSAI “Jaivik Bharat” initiative provides a unified certification and logo for organic foods in India, based on the Food Safety and Standards (Organic Foods) Regulations, 2017 [^ PDF ].  Green circular mark with “Jaivik Bharat” tagline symbolizes compliance with national organic standards. The Food Safety and Standards (Organic Foods) Regulations, 2017 recognize two systems of certification i.e. Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) implemented by Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) implemented by Ministry of Commerce and Industry 2.  Look for certifi...

A recent Reuters article points out that multinational food producers often make different versions of the same products to comply with local regulations, tastes and spending capacity . citing examples where the Indian versions of certain branded products are of lower quality: Fanta ingredients, nutrition table in UK Fanta soda retailed in India...contains artificial dye that is not present in the similarly-branded product sold in Britain. Fanta in India; Images - Open Food Facts Indian standard KitKats have ​4.5% cocoa solids, while the milk chocolate in the Australian version contains at least 22% cocoa.  All variants of Nestle’s Maggi instant noodles sold in India are made with palm ​oil, whereas many versions sold in Britain use pricier sunflower oil. Many of the Maggi packets sold in Britain are made in India, but they carry red front-of-pack labels warning of their high salt content. Nestle in 2024, for instance, announced it would start ​selling sugar-free Cerelac baby food ...

Ever wondered why some bottled green chutneys look brighter and more “fresh from the silbatta” than the ones you make at home? Spoiler alert: it’s not magic, and it’s not just the chillies. Sometimes manufacturers decide that nature’s green isn’t quite green enough… so they make it greener. That’s exactly what’s happening in Kissan Chilli Peanut Thecha Chutney with the addition of Natural Food Color (Chlorophyll). Images: Open Food Facts Although it contains a high percentage of green ingredients which provide natural green colour: Green chillies – 24% & Coriander puree (part of the 40% vegetables) but it still has added chlorophyll as a cosmetic ingredient! Chlorophyll (E140 / E140i) is a natural green food colour extracted from plants (typically grass, alfalfa, spinach, nettles, or similar). It is permitted in India and many other countries as a food additive. Some commercial green chutneys and sauces add chlorophyll purely to maintain an attractive bright green appearance th...

In India, a green dot inside a green square indicates that the food contains no meat, eggs, or animal products. So what happens when you pick up a tub of SuperYou Pro Fermented Yeast Protein (Chocolate) , spot the official Green Dot India icon on the label, turn it around to read the nutrition table, and see Cholesterol 2.84mg listed right there?  Image: Open Food Facts It feels like a contradiction. We are conditioned to believe two fundamental ideas: Cholesterol only comes from animals. The Green Dot means 100% vegetarian. If both are true, is the green dot a mistake? Is the brand breaking the rules, or is our basic biology textbook out of date? The Science: Where Did the Cholesterol Come From? Let's look at what is inside this tub. The protein source in SuperYou Pro isn't whey (which comes from cow's milk) or soy/pea (which comes from plants). It is Fermented Yeast Protein Isolate, specifically made using Saccharomyces cerevisiae —the exact same microorganism used for ce...

McVitie's Coconut Cookies sounded like a tropical escape. The ingredient list, however, reveals that the coconut seems to have missed the flight. 😄 With just 1.8% desiccated coconut powder , and the coconut experience leaning on nature identical and artificial flavouring substances, the cookie feels more "coconut-inspired" than truly coconut. Some older labels show the coconut content was 2.4% in the recent past. A little more real coconut and a little less help from the flavour lab could make these cookies live up to their delicious name. Here's hoping a future recipe lets the coconut do more of the talking!

Walk down the rusk aisle in any supermarket and you'll be greeted with cheerful promises of "Real Elaichi".  Pictures of green cardamom pods, comforting cups of chai, and words like Premium and Authentic practically guarantee a fragrant tea-time experience. Then comes the ingredient list. It turns out that in several products, the real elaichi is indeed present... just perhaps not quite as prominently as the front of the pack might lead one to imagine. Before going any further, an important disclaimer: The ingredient data below comes from product labels available on Open Food Facts, a community-maintained food database & Amazon India. Manufacturers may reformulate products over time, so the current product in the market may differ from the information presented here. Always refer to the label on the pack you purchase. How much "real elaichi" is actually there? Based on the ingredient declarations: Product Declared cardamom content Tata Soulfull Rusk Elaich...

Gluten is a family of structural protein s found naturally in certain cereal grains, most notably wheat, barley, and rye. Gluten isn't just one single molecule. In wheat, for example, it is made up of two primary sibling proteins: Gliadin : This protein gives dough its extensibility (the ability to stretch without breaking). This is also the specific protein component that triggers a reaction in people with Celiac disease. Glutenin : This protein gives dough its elasticity (the ability to bounce back and maintain structure). When you mix flour with water and begin to knead it, these two proteins link up to form a sticky, elastic, web-like network. 🍞 Why Food Manufacturers Love It Gluten acts as a natural binder or "glue" (which is actually where the word gluten comes from in Latin). The Trapping Effect: When yeast ferments the sugars in bread dough, it releases carbon dioxide gas. The elastic gluten network traps these gas bubbles, allowing the bread to rise and giving i...