Sodium hits the headlines again because of the Food and Drug Administration’s new sodium guidelines. The FDA’s concern for too much sodium in the diet is nothing new – it’s been standard practice in the medical industry to suggest that people with high blood pressure and sodium-related diseases reduce their intake.

We at On The Menu help our clients hit sodium targets in their food products by reducing salt in their recipes. A sodium reduction can lead to the ability to make a sodium claim on packaged food. The below chart is a quick reference on sodium claims.

Claim	Qualification
Sodium-free or Salt-free	Less than 5 mg of sodium per serving
Very low sodium	35 mg or less per serving
Low sodium	140 mg or less per serving
Reduced sodium	At least 25% less than the regular product
Light in sodium or Lightly salted	At least 50% less sodium than the regular product
No salt added or Unsalted	No salt is added during processing, but these products may not be salt- or sodium-free unless stated

On The Menu can help you identify if your packaged food products qualify for any of these sodium claims.