A study by The Times of India and FoodNav India found that as of March this year, India had eaten 7.35 million tonnes of vegetables in India, of which about 12 million tonnes were green vegetables.
The Indian National Green Crops Council (INGC) said the study showed the country had grown about 20 million tonnes green vegetables in 2015-16, the year the survey was conducted.
While green vegetables accounted for almost 30 per cent of India’s total green vegetables consumed in 2015, in 2020-21, it grew to almost half.
A survey by IFCS, which was conducted for the Green Food Survey 2017-2018, found that in the last five years, India’s green vegetables grew by 5.1 per cent annually.
The survey found that the number of people who said they eat green vegetables is on a par with India’s population, at about 35 million people.
Green vegetables account for less than 1 per cent, or about 1.8 million people, of the population.
In 2015-2016, the country saw a rise in green vegetables consumption by about 10 million people due to a drop in malnourishment.
Indian consumers have long been interested in green food, with several cities including New Delhi, Bengaluru, Pune, Ahmedabad and Jaipur attracting large numbers of tourists to eat green food.
At a meeting organised by the Green India campaign in May this year to promote green food in the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the country needs to focus on green food because it is the only food available to all.