Salt Content Changing in ConAgra Brands

At least one major company is responding to the Salt Initiative, officially launched in the U.S. earlier this year and previously discussed here at Cooperative Purchasers.

This week, ConAgra Foods, Inc., announced plans to reduce the salt content in its food portfolio by 20 percent by the year 2015.

This enormous undertaking attenuates ConAgra's previous efforts at salt reduction in 2006, whereby 2 million pounds of salt was eliminated from many of their well-known brands.

Included, and near and dear to many of our hearts (and stomaches), were Orville Redenbacher's popcorn®, Chef Boyardee® pasta, and the infamous, Healthy Choice®.

Healthy Choice® brand typifies ConAgra's historic commitment to reduce salt content in their processed foods. According to ConAgra, Healthy Choice® is "the only line of meals in the grocery store to earn the 'healthy' label, in part, for meeting the U.S. governments's recommendations for healthy sodium levels," to date.

With the new commitment, ConAgra is taking salt reduction even further. The plan reduces sodium by an additional 8 million pounds.

Do the simple math and we're looking at a goal of 10 million pounds of salt to be eliminated from ConAgra's food products (20 brands and 160 product varieties) in the U.S. market each year.

Al Bolles, Ph.D., executive vice president, Research, Quality & Innovation, ConAgra Foods, comments,

"ConAgra Foods has the ability to make an impact on sodium in a very broad way.

"What that means is that we'll need to use different techniques to keep or enhance the taste of all types of food in our portfolio, from Hunt's® tomatoes to Marie Callender's® convenient meals to Fleischmann's® table spreads.

"This is a definite challenge - but one that is very worthwhile and one we are confident that we can meet."

What are some possible outcomes of salt reduction?

For one, these "different techniques" will likely call on substitute food ingredients and food chemicals to impart the properties and textures that salt provided. A resultant shift may be observed in wholesale food ingredient sales.

Furthermore, if many other large food manufacturers follow ConAgra's direction, the economics surrounding wholesale salt sales will adjust.

Finally, this could effect consumer salt sales at the grocery store. If food tastes different, consumers may be inclined to add salt from the shaker.

Regardless, ConAgra's commitment to reducing salt intake remains unwavering.

Bolles continues,

"We expect to continue to make food better, whether it's through the inclusion of whole grains and other important nutrients, or reducing sodium, far beyond 2015.

"We recognize the critical nature of our role in good health, and we'll continue to make positive contributions.

"Providing good nutrition is essential to consumer and company well-being and is part of our overall commitment to social responsibility."