FSA wants further reductions of salt content in food
The Food Standards Agency has announced revised salt reduction targets for food brands to meet by 2012, but the British Retail Consortium warns the changes could put off consumers.
The voluntary targets have been set for 80 categories of food, with a crackdown on bread, meat products, cereals, ready-made meals and savory snacks to be the most effected.
Under the old target, for a loaf of bread, brands were asked to aim to reduce the amount of salt to 1.1 grams per 100 grams by 2010. This has now been changed to 1 gram per 100 grams by 2012.
For a can of baked beans the FSA initially recommended salt to be reduced to 0.8 grams per 100 grams by 2010, this has been amended to 0.63 grams per 100 grams to be met by 2012.
The new 2012 goals are part of the FSA’s ongoing pledge to have the daily average population intake of salt reduced to six grams a day.
FSA head of nutrition, Rosemary Hignett, says: “We welcome the reductions in salt levels that have already been achieved by industry, and its continued co-operation is vital if we are to continue to improve public health. The 2012 targets are challenging, but we also believe them to be achievable, though we will continue to monitor this.”
Later this year the FSA will launch further campaigns to increase the awareness around salt content in our food.
However, the British Retail Consortium expects the new targets to be a challenge to fulfill due to changes in consumer tastes.
Stephen Robertson, BRC director general, says: “Our members are Europe’s leaders in salt reduction and have made fantastic progress in the last decade. The FSA has rightly recognised these exceptional achievements.”
Robertson also said he was very dubious about the new targets, believing them to be harder to meet, as some customers will not accept the change in taste.
He added that it would be “perverse” to reduce the amount of salt in products to the point of lowering a product’s shelf life and perpetuating food waste.
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