16 Food Companies Join National Salt Reduction Initiative

NEW YORKSixteen food manufacturing companies have committed to join the National Salt Reduction Initiative, (NSRI) a campaign started by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg to reduce salt content in restaurants and packaged foods in the United States by 20 percent over five years.

Companies that pledged to join the NSRI initiative include Au Bon Pain, Boars Head Provisions Co., FreshDirect, Goya Foods, Hain Celestial, Heinz, Kraft Foods, LiDestri Foods, Inc., Mars Food US, McCain Foods, Red Gold, Inc., Starbucks Coffee Company, Subway, Unilever, White Rose and Uno Chicago Grill.

Unlike past salt reduction efforts in the United States, the NSRI includes mechanisms to monitor sodium in the food supply and to track companies progress toward specific targets. In addition, the initiative will use urine analysis to monitor changes in peoples actual salt intake. The NSRI is modeled on a program in the United Kingdom, where food makers have reduced salt levels by 40 percent or more in some products.