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In the preamble to the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) is expected to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for the people in India. Therefore, FSSAI has embarked on a large-scale effort to transform the country’s food system in order to ensure safe, healthy and sustainable food for all Indians through the ‘Eat Right India’ movement. The tagline ‘Sahi Bhojan. Behtar Jeevan’, thus, forms the foundation of this movement.

The “Eat Right Thali of India” is a concept from the Eat Right India movement, which promotes balanced and healthy eating through a plate model based on traditional Indian thalis. It visually represents a nutritious meal by showing the correct proportion of food groups, with a larger portion for fruits and vegetables (green), a moderate portion for grains (brown), and smaller amounts for fats and sweets (purple). This initiative is a key part of the FSSAI’s effort to educate the public on safe, healthy, and sustainable food choices.

Components of an Eat Right Thali:

• Green arc: Represents fruits and vegetables.
• Brown arc: Represents whole grains, cereals, and other starchy items.
• Purple arc: Represents foods high in fat and sugar, which should be consumed in smaller quantities.
• Green leaf: Symbolizes the importance of sustainable and environmentally responsible food production and consumption

Initiatives and goals:

• Balanced nutrition: The concept aims to promote mindful eating and a balanced diet for healthier lives.
• Culinary heritage: It showcases traditional thalis from different states of India to highlight their nutritional value.
• Public awareness: Through various campaigns, including the Eat Right Mela, the initiative raises awareness about safe food and healthy diets in an engaging way.
• Recipe initiative: FSSAI has launched the Eat Right Thali Recipe Initiative to share weekly recipes that align with the principles of a healthy thali.
• Sustainability: The movement is also focused on making food choices that are good for both people and the planet

Eat Right India adopts a judicious mix of regulatory, capacity building, collaborative and empowerment approaches to ensure that our food is good both for the people and the planet. Further, it builds on the collective action of all stakeholders – the government, food businesses, civil society organizations, experts and professionals, development agencies and citizens at large.

Eat Right India adopts an integrative or ‘whole of the government’ approach since the movement brings together food-related mandates of the agriculture, health, environment and other ministries.

Furthermore, since foodborne illnesses and various diet-related diseases cut across all age groups and all sections of the society it also adopts a ‘whole of society’ approach, bringing all stakeholders together on a common platform.

Eat Right India is aligned to thethe National Health Policy 2017 with its focus on preventive and promotive healthcare and flagship programmes like Ayushman Bharat, POSHAN Abhiyaan, Anemia Mukt Bharat and Swacch Bharat Mission.

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