Why in News?

  • The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI) 2026 report, released by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, highlights a significant decline in undernourishment in India over the past two decades.
  • However, the report notes that 5 million people remain undernourished, while 520.1 million people cannot afford a healthy diet.
STATE OF FOOD SECURITY & NUTRITION IN THE WORLD explained for UPSC

KEY FINDINGS FOR INDIA

Decline in Undernourishment
  • The share of undernourished population declined from: ? 21.1% (2004–06) to 9.8% (2023–25).
  • Number of undernourished people reduced from: ? 243.9 million to 142.5 million.
  • This represents a reduction of approximately 101 million people.
Affordability of a Healthy Diet
  • As of 2025, 1 million people (35.5% of the population) were unable to afford a healthy diet.
  • The proportion declined from 59.8% in 2017, but more than one in every three Indians still cannot regularly afford a nutritionally adequate diet.

RISING COST OF HEALTHY DIET

  • Since 2017, the cost of a healthy diet in India has increased by nearly 48%.
  • During the same period, the increase was about 32% in the United States.
  • In 2025, the cost of a healthy diet in India was estimated at PPP $4.11 per person per day.

INDIA IN COMPARISON

Country Cost of Healthy Diet (PPP $/day)
Pakistan 3.94
India 4.11
Bangladesh 4.59
Sri Lanka 5.21
Bhutan 6.17

OTHER COUNTRIES

Country Cost of Healthy Diet (PPP $/day)
China 3.64
United States 2.86
United Kingdom 2.75
South Korea 7.37
Japan 8.27

POSITIVE TREND

  • The report notes that the decline in the number of people unable to afford a healthy diet among lower-middle-income countries has been driven mainly by India.
  • Excluding India, the report indicates an increasing trend in the number of people unable to afford a healthy diet among these countries.

NUTRITION INDICATORS

Child Stunting
  • Among children below five years:
    • 41.7% (2012) ? 32.9% (2024).
  • Indicates improvement in chronic undernutrition.
Child Wasting
  • Wasting stood at 18.7% in 2024.
  • The report notes that this remains among the higher rates globally.
Overweight among Children
  • Increased from:
    • 2.1% to 3.7% over the same period.
Adult Obesity
  • The report states that adult obesity has doubled. Anaemia among Women
  • Among women aged 15–49 years, anaemia increased from:
    • 50.1% to 53.7%.

KEY CONCERNS

  • A large population continues to experience undernourishment.
  • More than one-third of the population cannot afford a healthy diet.
  • Rising cost of nutritious food.
  • High prevalence of child wasting.
  • Increasing incidence of overweight and obesity.
  • Rising anaemia among women of reproductive age.

SIGNIFICANCE

  • The report highlights significant progress in reducing undernourishment in India over the past two decades.
  • It also underscores the continuing challenge of ensuring affordable, nutritious diets for all.
  • The findings point to the double burden of malnutrition, with persistent undernutrition alongside rising overweight, obesity and anaemia.
  • India's progress has contributed significantly to improving affordability of healthy diets among lower-middle-income countries.