Instagram cooking fuels surge in exotic produce orders: Handpickd report

India’s fresh food consumption patterns in 2025 point to a clear behavioural shift, with growth driven less by novelty and indulgence and more by habit, trust and repeat purchasing, according to consumer data from zero-stock fresh commerce startup Handpickd.

While speed-led commerce continued to dominate urban narratives, Handpickd’s 2025 order data shows that consumers did not experiment more, they ordered more frequently. The most ordered item of the year was not a kitchen staple like onions, but coriander (dhania). The dhania–mirchi combination alone crossed 24,000 orders, making it one of the most frequently reordered stock-keeping units (SKUs) on the platform.

Tomatoes--across hybrid, desi and mixed-size variants were among the most repeatedly reordered items, followed by ginger, capsicum, bottlegourd, cauliflower and Nashik onions, underscoring continued demand for everyday cooking essentials.

At the same time, the data highlighted a sharp rise in demand for exotic produce. Orders in this category surged 20-fold year-on-year, increasing from 689 orders in 2024 to 14,659 in 2025--the fastest growth across any fruit or vegetable segment. Items such as avocados, coloured capsicums and broccoli did not replace Indian staples but were increasingly added to household baskets, reflecting the growing influence of global home cooking trends driven by social media food culture.

Another notable shift was the mainstreaming of safety-led produce. What were once niche labels—such as “ozonised” or “hydroponic”--gained widespread traction in 2025 amid heightened concerns over pesticide usage. Handpickd said the share of ozonised produce on its platform rose sharply from 4% in 2024 to 38% in 2025, indicating that nearly four in 10 consumers now consider hygiene and safety non-negotiable aspects of freshness.

Despite the surge in exotic and premium produce, fruit consumption remained rooted in everyday preferences. Banana Robusta emerged as the most ordered fruit with 22,249 orders, while coconut water crossed 13,000 orders, reflecting a broader shift towards natural hydration over sugary carbonated drinks. In dairy, malai paneer ranked among the top-selling SKUs, reinforcing continued consumer preference for traditional, homemade-style textures even as ultra-processed foods gain ground.

City-wise data showed Gurugram leading fresh food consumption on the platform, with 590,149 orders in 2025—nearly four to five times higher than volumes recorded in Noida and Bengaluru.