Salt Awareness Week brings fresh evidence of a food system failing the public. Kate Howard, coordinator of the Recipe for Change campaign at Sustain, looks at what new Action on Salt & Sugar research tells us, and why the people we spoke to in our citizens' charter are clear it's time for change.

This Salt Awareness Week, new research from Action on Salt & Sugar has laid bare a startling truth about one of Britain's most beloved lunchtime staples: the humble sandwich. A survey of 546 sandwiches, wraps, rolls and baguettes, sold across supermarkets and high street chains, found that nearly half (44%) would receive a red warning for high salt on the front of the pack and 1 in 4 (25%) are high in saturated fat, salt and sugar (HFSS) under rules which indicate whether foods are classed as ‘less healthy’. The worst offender, Gail's Smoked Chicken Caesar Club, contains 6.88g of salt - more than an adult's entire maximum daily limit in a single serving.

Adults consume an average of 8.4g of salt per day - 40% above the recommended limit - much of it hidden in processed, packaged and out-of-home foods. With 11.5 billion sandwiches eaten in the UK every year, and more than half of Britons eating one every day, sandwiches are a major contributor to this issue, with many people likely unaware of the levels of salt that they’re eating in their quick lunch-on-the-go.

Why does this matter so much?

Too much salt raises blood pressure, which is a leading cause of stroke and a major driver of heart and kidney disease. These are conditions which might not make themselves apparent quickly, but which have huge impacts on people’s lives, while placing enormous pressure on the NHS, and are, in large part, preventable. Salt reduction is one of the most cost-effective public health interventions available to us and yet, as Action on Salt & Sugar note, it has been sliding down the policy agenda.

High salt intake is not limited to adults and often begins in childhood. In the UK, 66% of children already exceed recommended salt limits. The health trajectories that begin in childhood follow people throughout their lives. When processed, salt-laden products are the cheapest, most visible and most convenient options on our shelves, we are setting children up to fail.

People are calling for change

This isn't just a concern for health professionals. The public are concerned too, and people across the country are making themselves heard.

Our recently launched Citizens' Charter, We're Fed Up!, brought together parents, families and young people from communities across the UK to hear their day-to-day experiences of shopping and eating, and the changes they want to see. The message was clear: people want healthier food on their shelves, and they feel the system is often working against them. As one participant put it: "It's really hard because you're asking individuals to change their behaviour, but in a system which is actively trying to make you buy more and buy loads of rubbish." When even the sandwiches on our shelves fail to offer healthier options, the problem is only further exacerbated.

Our recent polling backs this up. Nearly 3 in 4 (71%) people say food companies should do more to improve the healthiness of their products. And almost 8 in 10 (79%) say they are not confident companies will improve food without government action. The public isn’t confused about what change they want to see, they’re simply waiting for those with power to act.

The solution is clear

The good news is that this problem is solvable. Action on Salt & Sugar’s survey itself shows that lower-salt products are entirely achievable: several brands, including Greggs and The Gym Kitchen, demonstrate that reformulation is possible without sacrificing taste or commercial viability. The variation between similar products from different brands - sometimes more than double the salt content for the same filling - makes it impossible to argue that high salt is an unavoidable feature of these foods.

What is needed now is the same political will that delivered the Soft Drinks Industry Levy. Mandatory regulation, not voluntary pledges. Enforceable limits, not industry goodwill. As our Citizens' Charter makes clear, structural problems require structural solutions. More than 6 in 10 (61%) people believe government should do more to make healthy food available. The evidence on the need for action is there. The public appetite for action is there. What’s needed now is the political will to match it.

This Salt Awareness Week, we support Action on Salt & Sugar’s calls on the Government to reprioritise salt reduction as a public health priority, including reviewing outdated targets, introducing tougher mandatory limits through the Healthy Food Standard, as well as exploring other fiscal measures such as industry levies.

The public has shown they’re fed up with the food on our shelves – it’s time for the Government to listen.

 

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For more information on Recipe for Change’s Citizens’ Charter contact info@recipeforchange.org.uk

Read Action on Salt & Sugar’s latest Sandwiches Report.