Less Salt in Frozen Bake-off Products

Less Salt in Frozen Bake-off Products

With baked goods, processed food and ready-to-eat meals being major sources of our daily salt intake, salt reduction has been a perennial topic in the frozen food sector for years.

For baked items in particular, new technologies now make it easy to achieve effective salt reduction in products as well as in their décors while maintaining the indulgent taste experience and attractive appearance that consumers crave. Importantly for frozen food producers, these convincing solutions offer high stability during freezing and defrosting as well as throughout lengthy periods of storage.

Salt is the most popular food seasoning, and it has several important functions – in foods as well as in the human body. However, the average daily salt intake in developed countries is far too high and, according to health organisations all over the world, salt is a silent killer because it can raise blood pressure and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that adults consume less than 2 g sodium a day, which is the equivalent of 5 g salt. Unfortunately, in reality, most people eat 9 to 12 g salt a day. The biggest source of salt is bread, which accounts for nearly one quarter of the average daily intake. This is not just because bread is as high in salt as foods such as ready meals and pizza, but also because “our daily bread” is consumed in vast amounts.

More information is available in our print magazine, January-February 2018.