The COVID-19 pandemic triggered a surge in public interest in food. From social media influencers deciphering food labels to healthcare professionals advocating mindful eating, a positive shift towards food literacy is underway. One initiative with immense potential is TruthIn, an app that merges medicine and technology to empower customers to make informed dietary choices by providing insights into what’s in your food, how processed it is, and what labels and tags (like “sugar-free” or “high/low sodium”) mean.
TruthIn’s origin story stamps from personal experience. In 2022, CEO Ravi Teja Putrevu received a rare disease diagnosis (acromegaly) that heightened his risk of diabetes and heart disease. Scrutinising food labels became a necessity but Ravi found them “like a maze without a map.” Recognising the need for a comprehensive solution, he partnered with Dr Aman Basheer Sheikh, a seasoned dental surgeon who shared his passion for health and wellness.
Dr Aman, having observed clear labelling guidelines in countries such as China — where key information is presented in standardised font sizes — identified a significant lack of clarity in India’s food labelling system. “Many claims are misleading,” he notes. “Ingredients, particularly additives, that are often listed using confusing codes,” he points out.
To address this gap, Dr Aman connected with Raghav Putrevu, a technology consultant with 18 years of experience and a proven track record in the software industry. “He said, ‘If you guys really want to do this, I have the tech expertise and we can do it’,” Ravi recalls. This initial conversation blossomed into a collaborative project that garnered interest from healthcare professionals and tech experts with Dr Aman’s network.
What began as an idea in 2020 evolved into a company by 2022. The co-founders consulted with numerous experts in nutrition and health, including former officials from the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). “Nutrition is a vast and complex subject. We want to educate the masses about the importance of understanding what you eat,” Dr Aman says.
An algorithm for informed choices
TruthIn’s mission is clear: “We aim to bring transparency to consumers,” says Ravi. “Labels and tags are often complex and misleading. We want consumers to quickly identify any potential health risks and understand a product’s nutritional profile.”
The app employs a combination of algorithms and manual checks to assess food products. “When we started, we looked at established rating systems for packaged foods, such as the NutriScore in Europe and the Health Star Rating in Australia,” Ravi explains. “Through our network of advisors, including health and nutrition department heads from various hospitals, we developed guidelines for our algorithm to follow,” he adds.
However, the journey has not been without challenges. Initially, the team envisioned sourcing data from existing databases but soon discovered a lack of centralised repositories for product information in India. “We thought it would be easy to access a comprehensive database, but that wasn’t the case,” Ravi says. “We found that information on the internet was often inaccurate or outdated.”
After attempting to scrape data for over 50,000 products, they opted for a meticulous, ground-up approach to ensure accuracy. Currently, the team sends photographers to supermarkets to capture product images and ingredient labels directly. “We only rely on internet data for about 20% of our information,” Ravi clarifies. Essentially, they crowdsource product images and information to verify product details.
Combating misleading labels
TruthIn’s assessments extend beyond nutritional profiles. Their algorithm evaluates several factors: 45% is based on the nutritional profile, 45% on the health impact of ingredients, and 10% on the manufacturing process. “We adhere to ICMR and NIN standards set by dietitians and nutritionists,” Ravi explains.
The algorithm interprets product images, extracting and manually verifying information before assigning a health rating. “We even penalise products for adding known harmful additives,” Dr Aman adds.
Unhealthy diets, alongside physical inactivity, tobacco and alcohol use, and air pollution, remain major contributors to non-communicable diseases (NCDs). A report by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) reveals that the proportion of deaths from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in India rose significantly, from 37.9% in 1990 to 61.8% in 2016, with cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, cancers, and diabetes being the leading causes.
It’s these rising concerns that TruthIn hopes to address. “If we talk about potato chips, you might think they’re bad because they’re fried in oil and salt, but they often contain many other additives that we don’t realise or understand,” Dr Aman shares.
Despite these hurdles, the team remains committed to their goal. “We approach this from a solution-based perspective,” Dr Aman says. “The problem is that people don’t know what’s in their food. Our mission is to educate and empower consumers.” The TruthIn team consists of 35 members, including 15 nutritionists and doctors, working alongside tech professionals. The initiative is entirely bootstrapped and self-funded.
Currently, TruthIn has an active user base of approximately 85,000 to 1,00,000 users each month. The app features a unique TruthIn Rating system that assigns health impact of food products. Products are assigned health ratings on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the healthiest option. Users can easily find products that match their dietary needs and preferences through filter tags for nutrients, lifestyle, and allergens. The Shopping Cart Insights makes the shopping experience better by giving intelligent insights on cart contents, ensuring all products meet health criteria.
By simply scanning the barcode on a product’s packaging, users can get detailed information about its rating and relevant tags, such as high sodium, fat, sugar content, cholesterol levels, and sources of fibre or protein. Additionally, TruthIn is building a depository of products for users to check specific product information without scanning. With a subscription, users can also get personalised dietary insights through the MatchMeter feature, which considers age, gender, health conditions, and more.
Recently, TruthIn announced Revant Himatsingka, popular as Foodpharmer, as their brand ambassador. “Revant and our journey kind of began at the same time. I was really impressed that one single person has the courage to do this so openly,” Dr Aman shares. Together, they aim to tackle the challenges posed by complex product labels and health information, making it easier for users to make informed decisions.
Edited by Arunava Banerjee; All images courtesy Dr Aman Basheer Sheikh
