How much salt are you eating?

Salt – What’s it all about?

Salt is a topic commonly discussed in the news and by health experts, but what is it all about? Well, essentially it’s about an initiative that is being driven by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) trying to increase our awareness of how much salt we are eating compared to recommended levels.

Health experts recommend that for maintenance of health adults should eat no more than 6g salt per day, yet, on average, we eat more like 9g per day. So, in a bid to reduce our intakes the FSA have been running annual awareness campaigns and this year is no different. March 2007 brings the 3rd of these campaigns and this year the aim is to highlight how easy it is to choose foods with lower salt levels.

By taking the time to check out the nutrition panel (many products, such as Hovis, now provide nutrition information on the front of pack) to see how much salt a food contains it is easy to compare products and choose those lower in salt. Many products now contain nutrition information on the front of pack, along with details of how this compares to the Guideline Daily Amount (GDA), which in the case of salt is 6g per day for adults. Having this information on the front of pack makes it even easier to compare foods.

What are Hovis doing about salt?

Hovis’ heritage has always been firmly established in providing nutritious loaves and we constantly strive to improve our bread. We have been working hard to reduce salt for a number of years now and since 2004 have actually removed the equivalent of 500 tonnes of salt from the UK diet. But it doesn’t stop there. The Hovis team are regularly in contact with the FSA and continue to work hard to reduce the amount of salt in our bread, in line with FSA recommendations. And all this whilst at the same time making sure that we continue to bring you the great taste and goodness you expect from Hovis.

To find out more about salt, visit the Food Standards Agency website www.eatwell.gov.uk