Reducing global sodium intake

The American Heart Association brought together over 100 key stakeholders at a special conference about global sodium intake in June 2013, and the proceedings from the conference have now been published.

The group found that increasing consumer understanding for the need to reduce sodium intake, and the use of food technologies to reduce sodium in the food supply as much as possible should be top priorities.

In an effort to advance sodium reduction technology, Tate & Lyle showcased an ingredient at the conference, SODA-LO Salt Microspheres. This product tastes and functions like salt, but can reducer sodium in food applications such as bread and salty snacks by 25-50%. SODA-LO is created using a patented technology that transforms standard salt crystals into free-flowing, hollow salt microspheres that deliver salty taste by maximising surface area relative to volume.

Research presented at the conference showed the potential impact of replacing salt with SODA-LO on overall sodium intake. Using US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2007-2010 data, the potential usage of SODA-LO in 953 foods allowing 20-30% sodium reduction was modelled assuming a 50 or 100% market penetration. Results of the dietary modelling demonstrated that sodium intakes could decrease by 4% to 9% across age, sex, and ethnic groups. This reduction is equivalent to 130 to 360 mg/day.

While changing consumer palates for foods lower in sodium may require significant time, interim technologies like SODA-LO can provide a faster solution for sodium intake reduction.

“Tate & Lyle, as a leader in sodium reduction technology, can offer food manufacturers a novel, great tasting ingredient that can be used in products that consumers will enjoy and continue to demand,” stated Mike Harrison, senior vice president of New Product Development at Tate & Lyle.