Government to launch new salt consumption reduction drive

The Department of Health is to push forward with new efforts to reduce the amount of salt consumed by people across the UK by one-quarter.

According to the new government Salt Strategy, the 2012 salt targets for industry will be revised by the end of the year to encourage more companies to reformulate recipes, with the catering and take away sector in particular being pushed to do more.

Meanwhile, food businesses will be called upon to actively help people choose lower salt options through promotional and other activities, with the ultimate goal of reducing the average daily intake from 8.1g to 6g.

According to the latest government research, 53 percent of people rarely or never consider the amount of salt when buying food, despite 86 percent realising that too much is bad for their health.

Public health minister Anna Soubry said: "Currently 90 companies have signed up to make salt reduction a priority and we want to see real action from many more."

Last month, the government launched a new Change4Life advertising campaign to raise awareness of the fact that many Britons may be underestimating their own alcohol consumption levels at present.