Ralph Cator

“Critical to the success of this new voluntary sodium reduction
strategy is consumer acceptance,” Laws stated. “Consumers
need to be aware of why the changes are occurring and they
need to accept the changes in products for the strategy to be
successful.”
Laws also stressed that the meat industry is fully aware of the
importance of reducing sodium intake in Canada.
“Our members are committed to providing Canadians with
sodium-reduced options – and have been for several years
– evidenced by the many sodium reduced processed meat
products already available to consumers in grocery stores,” he
stated.
Looking ahead
According to Valade, the work of the SWG is far from over. She
said she expects one of the next steps may be the development
of a labelling system, similar to one used in the United Kingdom
(which, she noted, inspired Health Canada to create the SWG).
The U.K. system is based on using coloured traffic lights
symbols to warn consumers of sodium levels – for example a
product containing 1.25g of salt (or 0.5g sodium) is labelled red
while 0.25g salt (0.1g sodium) is labelled green.
“We’ll be looking at labelling options to support lower sodium
products and at a review as to whether the targets recommended
are in fact being met by industry,” she said.
Some specific targets for sodium reduction have been set (see
table) and more will be finalized in 2011. However, these targets
will be re-established over time as progress toward the 2016
interim goal is tracked.
For more information on the Sodium Reduction Strategy and how it
affects the meat industry, read Susan Evans’ article on page 30.
Sodium Reduction Strategy's
six overarching recommendations:
• Interim intake goal of 2,300 mg of sodium/day by
2016 – with a longer-term goal of 95 per cent of
population with a daily intake below the UL.
• Widespread collaboration across governments,
health professional organizations, NGOs, media,
industry and academia to implement the SWG’s
full slate of recommendations.
• Adequate federal/provincial/territorial funding to
support the SWGs full slate of recommendations.
• Integration of sodium reduction into government
and stakeholder nutrition programs, guidelines
and policies.
• Implementation process to include identifying
individual steps (including timelines) for each
recommendation, as well as monitoring completion
of each step.
• Canadians take personal steps to reduce sodium
consumption as part of a healthy diet.
Targeted Recommendations in Four
Areas:
• Food supply
• Awareness and education
• Research
• Monitoring and evaluation
For more information, read the full report, Sodium
Reduction Strategy for Canada, at www.hc-sc.gc.ca.
Draft Targets for Meat Products
The Sodium Working Group divided the food
supply into two groups: Group I foods (combined
contribute over 50% of the sodium in the diet) and
Group II foods which includes the remaining food
categories and restaurant and foodservice. Table 1
compares the current average sodium content of
the Group I meat products to the draft maximum
sodium levels to be achieved by 2016.
Categorization
Sodium average
mg/100g
Maximum
sodium level by
2016 (mg/100 g)
Uncooked Bacon - Belly and Back
Bacon
Fully Cooked Bacon - Breakfast
Strips, Substitutes and Back Bacon
Packaged Deli Meats - Pâtés and
Spreads
Packaged Deli Meats - excludes
Pâté and Spreads
Packaged Deli Meats – Dry Cured,
Fermented, No Thermal Processing
Uncooked Fresh Sausage -
Breakfast and Dinner Varieties
Fully Cooked Sausage - Smoked,
Not Smoked and Wieners
808.9 610
1388.2 1150
781.5 600
1029.7 890
1617.4 1400
789.1 690
992.7 870
Data compiled by Mary Ann Binne based on label
data and the proposed draft targets found at the
Health Canada website (www.hc-sc.gc.ca).
Canadian Meat Business September/October 2010
meatbusiness.ca