The article touches on a variety of PepsiCo’s innovations and R&D capabilities, including sodium.

“What we discovered is that people actually taste only about twenty to twenty-five per cent of the salt we put on our chips. They swallow the rest of it without tasting it,” says Mehmood Khan in       the article.

But, as the article says, reducing the amount of salt changed what flavorists call “the taste curve”—the sudden spike of saltiness on the tongue, followed by a tingling around the sides of the        mouth.

So Mehmood asked, “was there a different kind of salt crystal that would produce the same taste curve but with less salt?”

See the article and accompanying podcast for more. Also check out these other posts for more information on our cadre of “trekkers” and our laboratories.

What topics in the article did you find most interesting?

Check out the full report and audio link to the segment and let us know what you think!

Read the complete post at the Wall Street Journal and leave a comment to let us know what you think.

One of the things we are studying is the way a chip “holds” salt and salt perception. When you eat a chip, only about 20 percent of the salt actually dissolves on the tongue before the chip is chewed and swallowed while the other 80 percent is swallowed without contributing to the taste. Chips actually have comparable amounts of sodium (from salt) to other foods, such as breads and cereals, but those taste less salty because the salt is mixed in, while chips tend to taste more salty because the salt is usually on the surface.

The shape of the crystal is important because of how it interacts with your tongue. By studying the way salt functions naturally, including the shape and size of salt crystals, we will be able to better deliver the salty taste consumers want — but with less salt. The only difference between the 100 percent natural salt that we are studying and the salt that might be on your table at home is the shape. As is often the case, nature is really the best guide for us. Sea salt, for example, has a unique taste given its shape and other minerals.

Bringing a new food product to market is a very long process. It requires not only specific technology but a diversified team of food professionals including research and product development, consumer insights, regulatory, quality, procurement, engineering, nutrition, and packaging just to name a few. Using new ingredients in a product launch requires in-depth application and flavor science.  In the case of salt, we have to study not just the salt taste but also the salt functionality in food. This means things like how it helps preserves the food, affects texture, and something called “mouthfeel” which is how a product interacts in the mouth when eaten.

We know that humans have sweet and umami taste receptors, but to this point there is no known salt taste receptor. We need to understand these receptors better to try to understand salt perception.  Some studies show salt perception is through a sodium ion channel. By using spices and seasoning blends, savory flavors are often used to make up the difference in flavor when salt is taken out.  This is a common practice with chefs and seasoning developers around the world. I hope that answered the question. As always, leave us a comment and let us know what you think.

A recent report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows that 9 out of 10 Americans exceed the limit recommended for daily sodium intake. In fact, for the group of Americans whom a lower dietary intake of sodium is important, the amount of sodium consumed was more than double the recommended limit.

The CDC report also showed that only 9.6% of U.S. adults were below the recommended dietary limit of 2,300 mg per day for sodium; and only 5.5% among the group recommended to limit sodium intake to less than 1,500 mg per day achieved that target.  Overall, the average sodium consumption for U.S. adults was 3,466 mg per day, far in excess of the 2,300 mg per day recommended.  In the group of adults recommended to limit sodium intake to less than 1,500 mg per day, the actual intake averaged 3,366 mg per day. Excess dietary intake of sodium is not just an American issue but a genuine global health concern as emphasized by the World Action on Salt and Health and the World Health Organization.

Why is an excess intake of sodium a concern?  The scientific evidence is compelling that excess dietary sodium is associated with major adverse health outcomes, and that reducing this excess can be a cost-effective action that leads to a lower rate of new heart attack and stroke, as well as a lower death rate in all Americans, especially black men and women.

It has been estimated that 77% of dietary sodium intake in the U.S. comes from processed foods while another 11 percent comes from salt added at the table or during cooking. In the CDC report, most of the daily sodium consumed came from grain products such as yeast breads (36.9%) and meats, poultry, fish, and mixtures (27.9%), followed by vegetable products (12.4%).  The USDA has produced a list of the top products that contribute the most to daily sodium intake.

For any large scale sodium reduction strategy to be effective, it must engage all members of the entire food system including ingredient manufacturers, retailers, restaurants and especially the food industry.  PepsiCo has set a global goal and has made a commitment to reduce the average amount of sodium per serving in key global food brands, in key countries, by 25 percent by 2015, with a 2006 baseline. Given the capability we have today and substantial investments planned over the next 5 years, we believe we can achieve this goal.

For PepsiCo to achieve sodium reductions of 50% and greater, significant scientific and technological breakthroughs will be required and engagement of the broader scientific community is crucially needed. However, discussions of dietary sodium reductions today have typically been limited to public health officials, policy makers, health care providers and food industry scientists.  Conversations need to be broadened to include more than just these professionals. ‪

Input of scientists with expertise in taste perception; neurosensory receptor activation and signal transduction mechanisms; molecular and biophysical structure; and physiological properties of sodium salts is required to drive innovation.  We also need to engage scientists with expertise in socio-ecological determinants of lifestyle choices, behavioral economics, and choice architecture who can help nudge the public towards requesting and choosing foods and snacks with a reduced sodium content.‪

In the interim, we at PepsiCo are taking action today to increase the use of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, seeds, legumes, and nuts for which scientific evidence of health benefits exist.  In addition to our attention to sodium, we continue to invest in research and development and explore other opportunities (such as reducing added sugars, the saturated fat content, and calorie-density) to expand our product offerings.  We look forward to continuing the conversation on sodium and receiving input that may lead to even greater sodium reduction in foods without compromising taste, quality, and food safety.

References

1. CDC. Sodium Intake Among Adults — United States, 2005−2006. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report; June 25, 2010; 59(24);746-749. URL: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5924a4.htm.
2. World Action on Salt and Health (WASH). Salt & Health. URL: http://www.worldactiononsalt.com/health/salt_health.htm.
3. World Health Organization. Sodium intakes around the world. Background document prepared for the Forum and Technical meeting on Reducing Salt Intake in Populations (Paris 5-7th October 2006). URL: http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/Elliot-brown-2007.pdf.
4. Bibbins-Domingo K, et al. Projected Effect of Dietary Salt Reductions on Future Cardiovascular Disease. The New England Journal of Medicine February 18, 2010; 362(7):590-599. URL: http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/abstract/362/7/590
5. PepsiCo. 2009 Annual Report. Performance with Purpose – The Promise of PepsiCo. URL: http://www.pepsico.com/annual09/human_sustainability.html.
6. USDA.  National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 18; URL: http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/Data/SR18/nutrlist/sr18w307.pdf.
7. Mattes RD, Donnelly D.  Relative contributions of dietary sodium sources. Journal of the American College of Nutrition 1991;10(4):383-393.  URL: http://www.jacn.org/cgi/content/abstract/10/4/383?ijkey=7496e0ca4e5e9caa2531f3ceebdcad5cb082678c&keytype2=tf_ipsecsha
8. USDA. Could Behavioral Economics Help Improve Diet Quality for Nutrition Assistance Program Participants? DR Just, L Mancino, B Wansink (eds); Economic Research Report no. 43, June 2007. URL: http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/err43/err43.pdf.

Note: The views expressed here represent the personal views of the authors and not necessarily the views of PepsiCo, Inc.