Eat Right movement

Subject: Government initiatives

Context :

Two Indian initiatives have found places amongst the ten best global initiatives selected by the Rockefeller Foundation for its Food Systems Vision Prize 2050: Naandi Foundation’s work with tribal communities in Araku in South India and other is ‘Eat Right India’.

Concept:

• 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 ‘ BehtarJeevan’, thus, forms the foundation of this movement.
• 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 the 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.