New Delhi, Sep 19 (PTI) With the rising awareness about well-being, the market size of health-oriented food and beverages in 12 categories has grown at a CAGR of 11.7 per cent in four years to Rs 63,093
crore, a report said.
These 12 categories are noodles, tea, bottled soft drinks, atta, biscuits/cookies, salty snacks, oil/ghee/vanaspati, salt, sliced bread, ready-to- cook mixes, breakfast cereals and ice creams.
“Health has become an everyday choice for Indian consumers, with health-oriented food and beverage (F&B) products now representing Rs 63,093 crore in value, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.7 per cent over the past four years,” said Worldpanel India’s Mainstreaming Health 2025 study.
It highlights that 87.9 per cent of Indian households have purchased a health product in the past year. Urban penetration is nearly universal at 96 per cent, and rural is also catching up with the trend.
“Rural adoption is accelerating with a 6.2 per cent CAGR, signalling the democratisation of health across India,” it said.
Staple categories such as atta, salt, oil/ghee, and tea continue to dominate health penetration, with 80 per cent of households buying healthier variants.
“However, the strongest growth comes from “other foods” like ready-to-cook mixes (+46 per cent CAGR), salty snacks (+34 per cent), bottled soft drinks (+29 per cent), and biscuits (+19 per cent), where penetration is still relatively low but rising rapidly. Notably, once consumers adopt health, they tend to stick with it,” it said.
Moreover, the repeat purchase rates for the health sector are extremely strong at 91 per cent across the country and 96 per cent in urban households.
“This loyalty signals that health is more than a trend- it is becoming ingrained in consumer habits,” it said.
The report also reveals that shoppers are willing to pay a 22 per cent premium for health products, with even lower socio-economic classes paying 17 per cent more.
“Categories such as tea and bottled soft drinks attract the highest premiums, highlighting consumers’ belief in health benefits as a value driver,” it said.
According to the report, households managing conditions like diabetes, cardiac issues, or hypertension consume more health products.
However, adoption is now growing significantly in regular, disease-free households.
“Health has transitioned from being problem-led to prevention- and lifestyle-led, particularly among younger homemakers (under 34 years) and rural households,” it said. PTI KRH KRH ANU ANU
