# More sugar, different labels: How global food brands treat the Indian market

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/in-focus-by-the-hindu-421346/more-sugar-different-labels-how-global-food-brands-treat-the-indian-market
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/in-focus-by-the-hindu-421346/more-sugar-different-labels-how-global-food-brands-treat-the-indian-market.md
Podcast: [In Focus by The Hindu](https://stenobird.com/podcast/in-focus-by-the-hindu-421346)
Published: 2026-08-31T10:57:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.megaphone.fm/THGU3002440521.mp3
Audio file: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.megaphone.fm/THGU3002440521.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/in-focus-by-the-hindu-421346/episodes/more-sugar-different-labels-how-global-food-brands-treat-the-indian-market
Duration seconds: 1594

## Resource

“Do you not want people to be healthy?” That was the question the Supreme Court put to the FSSAI earlier this month, while hearing a case over warning labels on the front of packaged food, for foods high in sugar, salt, and fat. The Court questioned why the regulator had delayed implementing stronger warnings, particularly when the issue directly concerns public health and children.The question becomes even more significant now, after a media investigation found that some of the world’s biggest food and beverage brands use substantially different formulations for their products in India and abroad, with Indian products containing higher levels of sugar, salt or fat, along with less prominent health warnings.So, what determines what consumers get on their shelves and how much protection do our food-safety rules really provide? To understand this, today, on In Focus, we’re joined by Hyderabad-based paediatrician Dr. Sivaranjani Santosh, whose eight-year fight over the misleading use of “ORS” label on high-sugar electrolyte drinks eventually led to FSSAI banning the use of the term by products that do not follow the prescribed formulation. Guest: Dr. Sivaranjani Santosh, Paediatrician Host: Rishita Khanna Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/in-focus-by-the-hindu-421346/episodes/more-sugar-different-labels-how-global-food-brands-treat-the-indian-market/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/in-focus-by-the-hindu-421346/more-sugar-different-labels-how-global-food-brands-treat-the-indian-market.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.