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Food manufacturers to slash salt levels of sauces, processed meats

Posted by Rita Mu

The salt content of simmer sauces and saturated fat content of processed meats will be reduced under a voluntary agreement with leading food manufacturers and retailers.

The saturated fat content of the processed meats will also be cut under a new commitment made between the Federal Government’s Food and Health Dialogue and leading manufacturers and retailers.

The cuts will be made to 85 per cent of the market share for simmer sauces currently sold in Australia and 95 per cent of the market share for processed meats.

Chairman of the Dialogue and Parliamentary Secretary for Health and Ageing, Catherine King, said that the cuts would help to reduce the number of health problems such as high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, heart disease and high blood cholesterol, in Australia.

“With processed foods forming the bulk of the food supply for sale in Australia, manufacturers, processors and retailers have an increasingly important role to play in securing the health and wellbeing of the Australian community,” she said.

“What people eat has a major impact on their health. It’s pleasing that the food industry is keen to work with the Government to provide healthier products to consumers.”

The cuts made to simmer sauces and processed meats are the second round of targets announced under the Food and Health Dialogue. It follows the commitment by the food industry to reduce the sodium content of bread and breakfast cereals.

The Food and Health Dialogue, which is chaired by King, includes nominated members from the Australian Food and Grocery Council, the Heart Foundation, Woolworths, the Public Health Association of Australia, CSIRO, the Quick Service Restaurant Forum and Queensland Health.

Targets for simmer sauces

Leading manufacturers General Mills, AB World Foods, Goodman Fielder Home Ingredients, Mars Food Australia, Nestle Australia Ltd, Simplot Australia, SPC Ardmona and Unilever Australia, as well as major retailers Woolworths, Coles and ALDI, have agreed by the end of 2014 to:

• Reduce by 15 per cent the sodium content of pasta sauces, Indian-style sauces and other simmer sauces that exceed 420 milligrams of sodium per 100 grams; and
• Reduce by 15 per cent the sodium content of Asian-style simmer sauces that exceed 680 milligrams of sodium per 100 grams.

Companies have committed to reducing the amount of sodium contributed to the Australian diet and, to make this most effective, have agreed to target those simmer sauces that contribute the largest amount of sodium to the diet.

Targets for processed meats

In the case of processed meats, manufacturers Bertocchi, D’Orsogna, Fibrisol Service Australia, George Weston Foods, Myosyn Industries, Primo Smallgoods, Ridders Fresh/Tibaldi’ and retailers Woolworths, Coles and ALDI have agreed, by the end of 2013, to:

• Reduce the sodium content of bacon and ham/cured meat products to 1090 milligrams per 100 grams;
• Reduce the sodium content of emulsified luncheon meats to 830 milligrams per 100 grams; and
• Reduce by 10 per cent the saturated fat content of cooked/smoked sausages and luncheon meats (excluding salamis) that exceed 6.5 grams of saturated fat per 100 grams.

The products to be reformulated and the amount of sodium and saturated fat reduction per year will be determined by the individual companies involved.

More information on the Food and Health Dialogue, including agreed reformulation activities, is available here

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