Sodium in bread

Almost all bread contains salt, because without it bread doesn’t rise well and develop the right texture. But Kiwis eat too much salt and for many people that raises their blood pressure – a risk factor for heart disease and stroke.

According to Food Standards Australia New Zealand research, progressively reducing our intake by even one-quarter could reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke by 20 percent, saving the lives of 930 New Zealanders every year by 2018.

Industry-wide approach

The National Heart Foundation and the New Zealand bread industry have been working together to reduce the salt content of bread for some time. In 2007, Project Target 450 aimed to reduce the sodium content of lower-cost high-volume breads to 450mg/100g.

According to Namalie Jayasinha from the Heart Foundation this project was a success: “Project Target 450 removes 150 tonnes of salt out of the food supply each year.”

The bread sector is also a good example of where an industry-wide approach has worked. “Industry and the Heart Foundation are now focusing on other product categories such as breakfast cereals and small goods as part of a new initiative – HeartSAFE (Sodium Advisory and Food Evaluation),” Namalie told us.

Declining sodium concentration

According to New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) figures, on average the sodium concentration in white and wheat bread has declined by about 100mg per 100g since 1990.

This is good news for our salt intake and the levels at which salt has been reduced means there will be minimal or no impact on iodine fortification of bread. In September 2009 it became mandatory to replace non-iodised salt with iodised salt in all except organic and unleavened breads. This was done to address the re-emergence of iodine deficiency across most of the population.

The NZFSA has work underway to monitor the levels of sodium and iodine in bread.