ShareThisCanadians are to blame for the excessive sodium in everything from frozen dinners to breakfast cereal, according to major food manufacturers under increasing political pressure to cut salt in their products.
"We must balance the push of science against the pull of the market," Catherine O'Brien, director of corporate affairs at Nestle Canada Inc., told lawmakers during an appearance before the House of Commons health committee recently.
"Consumers will simply not compromise on taste," O'Brien said. "Therefore, (taste) must be a priority alongside improved health."
But medical experts are challenging that argument, saying there is no evidence to show consumers reject products with less salt.
The parliamentary committee has been looking into Canada's sodium problem for several weeks, in the wake of a series by The Globe and Mail that examined the serious dangers posed by the population's excessive salt intake -- including the toll it's taking on the health of children and teens.
The average Canadian -- including children as young as 1 -- consumes about 3,100 milligrams of sodium a day, more than double the recommended amount, and experts say this is fueling rising rates of high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and other problems.
A federally appointed Sodium Working Group has come under fire from medical experts and politicians for moving too slowly.
It recently set a goal of reducing Canadian sodium consumption to 2,300 milligrams a day -- the limit beyond which the chance of health problems starts to rise -- by 2016.
Many food companies have often said that expensive product reformulations are the chief roadblocks to salt reduction. But those arguments were undermined by a study published this past summer by the advocacy group World Action on Salt and Health that showed sodium levels in food products sold in Canada, such as Kellogg's All-Bran cereal, contain much higher amounts of salt than the same products sold in the United States and other countries.
For instance, one cup of All-Bran cereal in Canada has 620 milligrams of sodium, but in the U.S., one cup has only 160 milligrams of sodium.
Now, many companies say their efforts to reduce sodium are being held up by consumer preferences for salty foods -- and are warning the government against pushing them to move faster.
"Consumers are very sensitive to formulation changes and drastic changes in the flavor profile of an established brand, especially breakfast cereals they know so well," Christine Lowry, vice president of nutrition and corporate affairs at Kellogg Canada Inc., told lawmakers at the committee meeting.
Kellogg Canada officials declined a request for an interview for this story.
Like most other major food companies under pressure to reduce sodium, Kellogg advocates a gradual reduction over the course of several years.
Many medical experts say a gradual approach is an effective strategy for sodium reduction. But a growing number of federal politicians and health experts say they fear food companies are using that argument as an excuse to delay action on a critical health issue as long as possible.
In Britain, where one of the most aggressive sodium-reduction campaigns was launched several years ago, consumers didn't react to reduced salt levels in products, according to a manager and nutritionist who works on the campaign.
There has been "almost no consumer rejection in the U.K., and despite huge protestations from the food industry, we have not seen any complaints from industry that their sales have been affected," said Katharine Jenner, campaign manager with World Action on Salt and Health and Consensus Action on Salt and Health.
Many food makers have been trying to appease the public and politicians by promoting sodium-reduction efforts that are already under way. But most of the products being touted by those companies still contain excessive amounts of sodium.
For instance, O'Brien highlighted several Nestle products as evidence the company is moving to reduce sodium voluntarily. The sodium in Stouffers' meat lasagna frozen meal -- the top-selling Stouffers product -- has been reduced by 26 percent, she said.
But one meal, which weighs 286 grams, or just over half a pound, still contains 900 milligrams of sodium -- more than half the daily recommended intake for adults, according to nutrition information on the company's Web site.
The Canadian Stroke Network advises Canadians to avoid any product that contains more than 400 milligrams of sodium per serving.
In an interview, O'Brien said the company is working to reduce sodium, but that it's complicated because lower salt levels can affect other flavors in a product.
Meanwhile, an expert group created by the Pan American Health Organization and the World Health Organization said this week that salt reduction is one of the fastest and most cost-effective ways to reduce the burden posed by chronic diseases.
(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)
Canadian clients may not useMust credit Toronto Globe and Mail(All currency U.S.)
