• July 3, 2012

Reducing sodium while maintaining a product's taste and appearance has long been one of food makers' biggest challenges.

Now, Cargill has introduced a new ingredients system designed to help food makers reduce sodium in a wide range of foods by as much as 50%.

The SodiumSense system provides 1:1 salt replacement through three different flavor-profile varieties for meat, cheese and bakery items, reported FoodNavigator-USA.com. The system can be applied in sauces and cheese, processed meats, prepared meals, salted snacks, soups and baked goods.

During last week's IFT expo, Dr. Janice Johnson, Cargill's applications and technical services leader for salt, explained that the innovation is a functionally enhanced potassium chloride: the salt crystals' shape was changed to make them "stick" better, and flavor was added to enhance saltiness. On labels, the ingredients would be listed as potassium chloride and natural flavoring. 

Johnson reported that Cargill is already working with food manufacturers to help them hit recommended government sodium targets, particularly for the school lunch program. (The U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommend consuming no more than 1,500 to 2,300 milligrams of sodium per day.)

SodiumSense is Cargill's 20th sodium-reduction ingredient.