Salt Reduction: why, how & what next? Claire Hughes Company Nutritionist Marks & Spencer

Salt Reduction: why, how & what next? Claire Hughes Company Nutritionist Marks & Spencer

Market Reach: Year 09/10 Population coverage 83% Northern Ireland 2009 1.Newtown Abbey 11. Douglass Ise o 2.Armagh 12. Enniskillen 3.Ballymena 13. Foyleside 4.Bangor 14. Lisburn 5.Belfast 15. Belfast Malone 6.Boucher Road 16. Newry 7.Bow Street Mall 17. Newtownbreda 8.Coleraine 18. Omagh 9.Cookstown 19. Upper Newtown 10.Cresent Link Southern Ireland 2009 1.Athlone 2.Blanchardstown 3.Blackrock 4.Clarion Quay 5.Clonmel 6.Cork 7.Drogheda 8.Dundrum 9.Dun Laoghaire 10.Galway 11. Grafton Street 12. Killarney 13. Letterkenny 14. Liffey Valley 15. Mary Street 16. Mullingar 17. Naas 18. Navan 19. Newbridge 20.Tallaght

Salt Reduction - why High blood pressure is one of the main contributors of heart disease Too much salt in the diet is a risk factor for high blood pressure Treble risk of heart disease and stroke Average salt intake in Ireland is 10g a day should be around 6g! 65-75% of the salt in manufactured foods

Salt Reduction not new at M&S Started a programme of salt reduction in bread - 1998 Worked with British Retail Consortium to develop salt targets These targets where for areas that contributed most salt in the diet e.g. prepared meals, soup, sausages etc. Average salt intake in Ireland is 10g a day should be around 6g! 65-75% of the salt in manufactured foods

Salt Reduction - CSR commitment Plan A Commitment: Climate change Fair partner Raw materials Waste Health 93. Salt Making further reductions to the amount of salt in our foods by working to M&S targets, many of which go beyond those set by the FSA.

Salt reduction our approach Internal and supplier consultation on realistic targets Gradual reduction over time Developed a salt policy/guidelines for development teams minimise added salt where possible reducing quantity of high salt ingredients reformulation to reduce added salt reviewing where salt comes from in recipes using alternatives e.g. herbs and spices Training sessions/engagement sessions stores suppliers internal development teams

Salt reduction our approach Quarterly salt tracking Independently audited by Ernst and Young

Salt reduction healthy products Maximum Salt limits in M&S healthy food offer: Eat Well Count on Us (diet range) Children's range

Progress against FSA 2010 (original) targets Currently meet over 70% of salt targets including categories that contribute most salt to the diet: Prepared meals Bread Cakes Pizzas Sandwiches Sausages Meat Pies Breakfast Cereals Soups and many more

FSA 2010 Areas of Challenge Cooked meats Salt required for product safety Soft and processed cheese Dried noodles Canned vegetables Salt required for textural properties and shelf life 1 product sweetcorn! Other cereals Classification and textural properties e.g. poppadoms

Case Study: every day sliced meats What we did: Worked with Danish Meat Research Institute Established framework for minimum level of salt Reduced salt in brine in various amounts across ham range (whole muscle, reformed and shaped) Achievements: Reduced salt in our biggest selling lines by 28% across the range Everyday ham 33% Honey roast ham 33% Breaded ham 33% Resulted in removal of 15000 tonnes of salt a year Restrictions: Shelf life reduction and product safety Changes in product texture and flavour

Case Study all butter cakes What we did: Switched to unsalted butter Changed raising agents removed added salt Achievements: Reduced salt in our cakes by 17% Carrot cake 21% Chocolate sponge roll 27% Eccles cakes 43% Restrictions: Limited scope to replace sodium bicarb in slow rising products e.g. crumpets

Case Study- prepared meals and pizzas What we did: Reduction of added salt Alternative ingredients such as herbs and spices Achievements: Chicken Casserole 55% Chicken Korma 19% Lamb Casserole 61% Cheese and Tomato pizza 23% Mushroom and Bacon pizza 27% Restrictions: Limit innovation of products using high salt ingredients such as soya/ fish sauces, cheese, ham, bacon etc Customer complaints- tasteless

Case Study- Bread What we did: Reducing added salt Achievements: Reduced by 20% across the bread range: soft oatmeal rolls 33% everyday white loaf 23% 10 tortilla wraps 48% Restrictions: Further salt reduction would require innovations in bread technology- salt required for: adding flavour helping the bread take shape stopping the bread rising too much (salt slows down the yeast) prevents poor load and collapsing Speciality breads require higher salt levels

Challenges with FSA 2012 Targets Currently meet 30% of new 2012 targets, however there are many challenging areas Need to be average or maximum targets Pizzas Bread with high salt additions Sausages and Burgers Bacon Limited by base, cheese, and cured meat toppings Limits innovation, product differentiation, challenging for speciality breads Reducing the level of added salt will lead to reduction in life, change in texture (salt needed to develop protein binding) and flavour reduction Possibility to remove sodium metabisulphite (preservative) but this has knock on consequences of reducing shelf life and potentially impacting on waste Sodium nitrite contributing to the analysed sodium value. Reduction will impact upon shelf life (a min. 7 day reduction) and potentially upon the safety

Challenges with FSA 2012 Targets Ham and other cured meats Reformed and formed products, textural and physical stability problems Whole muscle products will produce poor cure at best and a possible miscure Microbiological safety risk Reduced shelf life Research effort and cost involved in trying to safely achieve a 1.75% maximum disproportionate to salt intake benefits.

Product Labelling

Customer Information Customer Fact Sheet Website

Summary Continue to reduce salt across our food without compromising on safety or customer acceptability We won t reach all the proposed FSA targets by 2012: o o o o Gradual, step by step approach works best Research on safety limits Taking our customers with us Education to help consumers balance their diet Requires: o Committed and expert technical and product development team o Stakeholders working together to share knowledge o Ingredient, flavour, sensory research