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The creation of a new UK trade group, the BCCC, focused on cutting salt and saturated fat in the bakery and snacks sector, puts further pressure on manufacturers.

With regulatory bodies, consumers and the media focused on salt reduction in particular, what's being done to help manufacturers achieve targets? What are the formulation issues to overcome? And how can manufacturers deliver healthier food that still tastes great and encourages consumer purchase?

*Hanneke Veldhuis, DSM Food Specialities, comments. *

"Initiatives like the BCCC group highlight the importance attached to continuing to reduce salt and sodium levels, which the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) recently identified as the major challenge facing the industry. The Consensus Action on Salt and Health (CASH) estimates that 80% of our salt comes from processed foods. Bread is recognised by CASH as the food category which contributes most to daily salt intake.

"While research shows that the average daily salt consumption in the UK has fallen from 9.5g to 9g since 2001, it still far exceeds the 5g per day recommended by the World Health Organisation. So it's no surprise that further reductions are sought by regulatory bodies. Ingredient suppliers must work with manufacturers to understand the challenges they face and develop new technologies to reduce salt levels in line with health concerns.

"Critical to the success of this initiative is that these reductions must be achieved without affecting the eating enjoyment consumers expect. There must be a balance between taste and nutrition. Many traditional salt replacement products seem to negatively affect food flavours and haven't been widely accepted by the consuming public. These solutions may also involve complex and costly formulation modifications."

Salt solutions "One successful strategy is adding flavours, seeds or spices in baked goods to compensate for loss of salty taste. Tesco, for example, sells bread flavoured with Guinness, and Allied Bakeries produces wholegrain and cranberry. While innovative new styles and flavours of bread are growing in popularity, they're not always to everyone’s taste and fail to deliver an easy to use solution for bread manufacturers looking to reduce salt levels.

"Aware of these issues, we developed Maxarite, a range of natural ingredients using yeast-based technology. Launched at last year’s FiE, the Maxarite range has been specifically developed for bakery and dairy applications. It can reduce sodium content in bread and cereals, along with various dairy applications, by up to 50%.

"Our sensory tests show that it delivers an improved taste perception, together with lower sodium, to meet consumer expectations for healthier, enjoyable food. Importantly, these ingredients can be integrated into existing food manufacturing processes with minimal disruption.

"Health concerns surrounding reductions in salt will remain firmly on the health agenda. Ingredients suppliers need to respond with innovative solutions that meet the demands of all parties. Our Maxarite range, for example, also offers solutions for great-tasting, low fat dairy concepts which we are currently discussing with customers.

"The solutions are available – it is a question of ingredient suppliers and manufacturers working together to deliver the healthier products consumers, the retail industry and regulatory bodies are looking for.”

* About DSM Food Specialties* DSM Food Specialties is a leading producer of value-added ingredient solutions for the international food and beverage industries, with 1,400 employees active in 26 locations worldwide.