Taking heed of the government’s advisory against marketing beverage mixes and drinks like Bournvita, Horlicks, and Boost as “health drinks,” a category not officially recognized in food regulations, e-commerce platforms have initiated the classification of these products as “nutrition drinks.”
For example, BigBasket has begun eliminating the term “health drinks” from its search options. While consumers may still encounter beverages labeled as “health drinks” on other company websites and apps, achieving full compliance will take some time. Industry executives explained that this process involves extensive adjustments to product listings and backend systems across various companies.
Beyond e-commerce platforms, consumer goods companies are also adjusting their product positioning internally to adhere to government directives. Hindustan Unilever, for instance, is now categorizing its brands Horlicks and Boost as “functional nutrition drinks” internally. This marks a shift from their previous labeling as health food drinks in investor presentations until the December quarter.
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“We updated the labels as necessary to ‘functional nutrition,’ which I also believe is the appropriate…much improved way to refer to the category,” stated Rohit Jawa, CEO & MD of HUL.
“We see a significant role for the functional nutrition category within the community, addressing micro-nutrient deficiencies and providing consumers across all income levels with appropriate daily nutrients. Additionally, the market for this category remains relatively untapped, presenting ample opportunities for growth,” Jawa remarked. He added that the company continues to observe increasing penetration of Boost and Horlicks.
A company insider clarified that there has been no alteration in the packaging of its products, as Horlicks and Boost packs were never labeled as health drinks to begin with.
Regarding the e-commerce sector, executives noted that changes to mobile apps are being implemented more swiftly compared to websites, although it may take some time for these modifications to be reflected on the website.
On the BigBasket website, the listing for Horlicks Millet Chocolate is characterized as both a malt-based food drink and a health food drink. Meanwhile, on the Swiggy Instamart app, the listing for Horlicks Classic Malt Refill drink mix has been described as the “ultimate health and nutrition drink for kids.”
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Walmart’s Flipkart indicated that the “reclassification” is still ongoing. “We are currently collaborating with brands regarding the directive on listing healthy drinks,” stated a spokesperson for the company. Amazon has already labeled the majority of products as “nutrition” drinks or, in some instances, as malt-based food drinks. A company insider confirmed that the term “health drinks” is no longer in use.
Queries directed to Swiggy, Zepto, and Blinkit remained unanswered.
“BigBasket has discontinued health drinks as a category as well as removed this as a search term and from product descriptions,” a company spokesperson said.
