(Wall Street Journal) PLANO, Texas—Later this month, at a pilot manufacturing plant here, PepsiCo Inc. plans to start churning out batches of a secret new ingredient to make its Lay’s potato chips healthier.
The ingredient is a new “designer salt” whose crystals are shaped and sized in a way that reduces the amount of sodium consumers ingest when they munch. PepsiCo hopes the powdery salt, which it is still studying and testing with consumers, will cut sodium levels 25% in its Lay’s Classic potato chips. The new salt could help reduce sodium levels even further in seasoned Lay’s chips like Sour Cream & Onion, PepsiCo said, and it could be used in other products like Cheetos and Quaker bars.
At an investor conference Monday in New York, the company said it is committed to cutting its products’ average sodium per serving by 25% by 2015 and saturated fat and added sugar by 15% and 25%, respectively, this decade.
The designer salt is one of the latest and most intricate efforts yet by a food company to vault ahead of concerns among government officials about the possible health effects of the widespread use of sodium in processed foods.
Eating too much salt can contribute to high blood pressure, increasing the risk of heart disease. Most Americans consume about twice their recommended limit daily, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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If the ‘new’ salt substitute ingredient reduces the NaCl and has no other biochemical side-effects ( a lot to ask of a ‘salt something’) bravo for PepsiCo – Frito Lay. This can reduce the detrimental factors of yesterday & todays’ sodium laden foodstuffs. Potassium and calcium are obviously good substitutes when carefully incorporated.
What a joke! Why is it going to take 5 years to reduce the salt by 25%, and a full 10 years to reduce the saturated fat 15% and the sugar by 25% ? Well, doesn’t PepsiCo just deserve a big pat on the fat behind!
The reason for the time span is actually very simple. In 5 – 10 years no one will remember this promise, and if you actually eat their product, (in a quantity that would make this significant for you) the chances are that you would be too fat or too dead to care.
I commend the Pepsi Co for trying to adjust the salt level in their products. If they can come-up- with a substitute for salt that is not harmful, I welcome their efforts. I eat very little junk food. Why not re-invent the wheel and come up with a healthy product.