Author(s)

Molly Riordan¹, Brandy-Joe Milliron^2*, Rachel Sherman³, Lauren Miller³, Jennifer Aquilante⁴, Jonathan Deutsch⁵

¹Division of Chronic Disease & Injury Prevention, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
²Department of Nutrition Sciences; College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA.
³Drexel Food Core Lab, College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA.
⁴Division of Chronic Disease & Injury Prevention, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
⁵Drexel Food Core Lab, Department of Food and Hospitality Management, College of Nursing and Health Professions, Drexel University, Philadelphia, USA.

Aim: Public health professionals focus on both downstream (individual) and upstream (population-level) interventions to reduce sodium consumption and prevent sodium-related chronic diseases. Effective upstream interventions specifically aimed at reducing dietary sodium intake include the implementation of comprehensive nutrition standards that restrict the amount of sodium contained in foods available for purchase. The aim of this work was to identify sought-after foods that did not meet the Philadelphia Nutrition Standards’ sodium limits and reformulate those foods to be standards-compliant and consumer-acceptable. Subject and Methods: Two foods were reformulated for compliancy with the Philadelphia Nutrition Standards’ sodium limits and consumer acceptability: the hoagie roll and soft pretzel. Reformulation included sensory testing and engaging potential manufacturing partners to investigate products’ commercial potential. Results: While hoagie roll reformulation led to a local company manufacturing and selling the reformulated product, soft pretzel reformulation stalled due to lack of consumer acceptability of the reformulated product. Salt contributes desirable characteristics in the texture, taste, and appearance of the soft pretzel, the absence of which consumers found unacceptable. Conclusion: Product reformulation holds great potential to create lower-sodium foods that otherwise have all of the characteristics of the higher-sodium “original” products but requires an understanding of the role of salt in product recipes. Reducing salt without considering its multiple functions in food may result in a product that is unacceptable or even unsafe. A simple four-step tool can help public health practitioners evaluate the extent to which products are suitable for reformulation.

Sodium Chloride, Dietary/Administration & Dosage, Health Promotion/Methods, Nutrition Policy, Food/Standards, Food Technology

Riordan, M. , Milliron, B. , Sherman, R. , Miller, L. , Aquilante, J. and Deutsch, J. (2021) “No Need to Get Salty” Or Is There? Sodium Functionality as a Consideration in Nutrition Public Health Policy. Food and Nutrition Sciences, 12, 138-146. doi: 10.4236/fns.2021.122012.