Meat+Poultry - January 2020 - 67

ll types of meat and poultry - value and
premium brands - gain consumer appeal
when sodium content skews on the
lower side, according to a Harris Poll sponsored by Kemin, Des Moines, Iowa. While some
research suggests that flagging a sodium reduction on package fronts may imply less flavor,
other research indicates that some consumers
are attracted to such content claims. With so
many ingredient technologies available to cut
back on added sodium, it is now possible to
tweak formulations without compromising on
quality. Consumers welcome the efforts.
" The study showed that consumers who
read labels and ingredient statements often
base their purchases off of content claims,
such as calories, fat, sugar and sodium, rather
than the actual words listed in the ingredient
statement or if the product has an 'all-natural'
or 'free-from' claim, " says Amanda Houser,
strategic technology manager, Kemin. " The
relevance here is that all brands have the
opportunity to make reduced-sodium claims. "

FORM + FUNCTION
To get sodium content down, processors
should evaluate all the sources of sodium along
with their functions. Many sodium-containing
ingredients are necessary for the manufacture of delicious, visually appealing, safe and
affordable meat and poultry products.
The primary source of sodium is sodium
chloride, or simply salt, which is used in
brines, marinades and seasonings. Salt is
included directly in batters and breadings, with
the latter often based on chemically leavened
bread crumbs, where the chemical leavening
agent may also be a source of sodium, e.g.,
sodium bicarbonate (baking soda).
" Adding salt to meat products helps
improve flavor, increase yield and extend shelf
life, so reducing sodium can prove to be a complicated feat in meat and poultry, " says Janice
Johnson, food science lead for salt, Cargill,
Minneapolis. " Through extensive research,
we've discovered that one of the best sodium
reduction solutions is potassium chloride. In
meat applications, it effectively upholds flavor
and functionality, while enabling significant
reduction in sodium. "
While potassium chloride may reduce
sodium by up to 50 percent in certain applications, there's an additional benefit that is often

overlooked. This sodium-reduction ingredient provides the consumer with potassium,
an under-consumed nutrient that is known to
counter the effect of sodium on blood pressure.
Potassium chloride may be used in
meat products in the same manner as
sodium chloride. It also exerts most of the
same functionalities.
When used to replace more than half of
the sodium chloride in meat products, bitter
and metallic tastes may become detectable.
Another drawback is its name. The belief is
that the average American consumer finds the
term " potassium chloride " to be too chemical
sounding. Regulatory efforts are in place
to remedy this issue.
" At present, it appears as
'potassium chloride' on ingredient
statements; however, the US Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) is
currently considering the use of
an alternate name for potassium
chloride on ingredients labels, "
Johnson says. " In September 2019,
the official public comment period
closed for a draft guidance proposing the use of the name 'potassium
chloride salt' on food labels. "
Omaha, Nebraska-based NuTek
Food Science uses a patented,
all-natural process to transform
standard potassium chloride into a unique
potassium salt crystal. This process increases
the potassium salt crystal surface area and
eliminates the bitter off flavors commonly
associated with standard potassium chloride,
according to Barry Knudson, chief operating officer.
" Its unique attributes offer clean and simple
label opportunities by avoiding the need to
use expensive flavor modulators or bitter
blockers, " he says. " Our sodium reduction
technology is effective in all meat and poultry
applications, including seasoning blends, batters and breadings, brines, tumble-marinated
or injected-whole muscle products, chopped
and formed patties, hot dogs, and sausage links
and patties. "
Steve Zimmerman, senior director technical
sales, says, " We performed extensive academic
studies of our potassium salt and validated
its functionality is equal to sodium salt as it
relates to protein extraction, water-holding

Research is split on
whether consumers find
low sodium claims on
packaging attractive or a
flag indicating less flavor.

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