Breakfast cereal manufacturers Kellogg's is to cut the salt content of some of its most popular foods following warnings by public health experts that they contain as much salt as sea water.
The salt content of Rice Krispies, Coco Pops, Ricicles and Coco Pops cereal and milk bars is being reduced by 40 per cent without affecting the taste, the company announced. The salt content of Rice Krispies squares and Rice Krispies chocolate squares was being cut by 30 per cent.
Public health experts warn that excessive dietary salt intake is associated with illnesses such as high blood pressure, strokes, heart disease, cancer of the stomach and osteoporosis. Process foods continue to be the main source of dietary salt.
However, Prof Ivan Perry, of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at NUI Cork, said the reduced salt content of 0.65g/100gs in Rice Krispies continued to be very high. Kellogg's cornflakes are not affected by the salt reduction and continue to have a salt content of 1.1g/100gs - the same as sea water.
A bowl of Kellogg's cornflakes contained a gram of salt, or one-sixth of the British recommended daily allowance, according to the professor of cardiovascular medicine at London's St George's Hospital, Prof Graham MacGregor.
However, Kellogg's manager of nutrition affairs, Dr Kathryn O'Sullivan, said the firm would continue consumer research to establish how it could reduce the salt levels in its remaining cereals and convenience foods, without compromising their taste. Production of the reduced-salt products had begun at the British plants, which supply Irish stores, and the products would make their way onto Irish shelves in due course.
Processed foods continue to be the main source of dietary salt, with processed bread, biscuits and breakfast cereals the most common sources. Salt is added by the food industry to enhance taste. It also enables manufacturers to increase the amount of water the food can retain, thereby increasing the weight of products.
The risk which excessive dietary salt levels posed was recognised in the Government's cardiovascular health strategy published last year. The Food Safety Authority has been given responsibility for examining the dietary salt intake issue and advising on a national policy on salt.
"We should now reasonably ask the food industry to make a greater effort to get salt content down to a low level, particularly for foods which are part of the basic diet," Prof Perry said.
He said the Finnish government succeeded very quickly in significantly reducing the salt content of food by introducing legislation which required foods containing above set percentages of salt to be labelled "high salt".
Supermarket chains Asda, Coop and Marks & Spencer have also reduced the salt in their own-brand ranges.