PepsiCo developing "designer salt" to reduce sodium intake
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PepsiCo Inc. is planning to add a secret new ingredient to Lay's potato chips in order to make its popular snack healthier.
This new "designer salt" consists of crystals, which are shaped and sized in a way that reduces the amount of sodium consumers ingest when they munch.
PepsiCo aims to cut sodium levels 25% in its Lay's Classic potato chips by the use of the powdery salt, which it is still studying and testing with consumers, The Wall Street Journal reported. 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 announced it targets to cut its products' average sodium per serving by 25% by 2015 and saturated fat and added sugar by 15% and 25%, respectively, this decade.
By 2015, PepsiCo hopes to cut sodium in its salty snacks 25%. "What we want to do with our "fun for you" products is to make them the healthiest "fun for you" products," Chairman Indra Nooyi said. "We want our potato chips to be fried in the healthiest oils with the lowest salt."
The introduction of the new salt could take two years, Dr. Yep said. In the meantime, PepsiCo is reducing the salt in new versions of seasoned Lay's such as Sour Cream & Onion this year by an average of 25% by switching to natural ingredients and rebalancing other flavors so that less sodium is needed.
[Source: The Wall Street Journal]