Time to SHAKE-up the slow pace of global sodium reduction

Posted by

Saltwell

29 May, 2026

On 29 May, 2026

The World Health Organization has issued an urgent update to its sodium reduction guidance.

It first set a global sodium reduction target in 2013, recommending a 30% reduction by 2030. Now over 10 years later, the food industry has not implemented enough action to reduce the sodium content in the food it produces for consumers, and the world is lagging behind on the WHO goal. This was recognised also in 2021, and subsequently the WHO’s Global Sodium Targets for the international food industry were set, covering 60 food categories such as breads, cheeses, meats, breakfast cereals, and cooking sauces.

Currently only 28% of the world population lives in countries with mandatory sodium reduction policies. Salt intake is a global public‑health problem, and the WHO’s “The Salt Habit” paper underlines how urgently the world needs to cut sodium. This is a challenge and opportunity that aligns directly with SALTWELL’s mission to help food manufacturers reduce sodium while keeping the taste and quality that consumers love.

Why the WHO is targeting salt

The recent WHO paper reiterates that high salt consumption is a major driver of high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke, and that most populations consume far more than the recommended 5 g of salt per day (about 2000mg sodium). It stresses that lowering salt intake at a population level is one of the most cost‑effective interventions governments can make to reduce noncommunicable diseases and premature deaths worldwide.

For SALTWELL, this reaffirms our core mission. Regulatory pressure on sodium is not going away; in fact, it will intensify as countries translate WHO guidance into national targets and reformulation policies.

The SHAKE framework in brief

To support governments, the WHO introduces the SHAKE package – a structured framework for salt reduction that covers:

Surveillance
Harnessing industry
Adopting standards
Knowledge for consumers
Environment improvements

The paper explains how countries can use SHAKE to measure population salt intake, set targets, reformulate products and educate consumers, all within a coherent national strategy.

From a SALTWELL perspective, this framework effectively maps out the levers that will shape the food industry’s operating environment: mandatory or voluntary sodium limits, labelling schemes and reformulation incentives are all likely to expand.

Harnessing the food industry

A central message of the paper is that governments cannot reduce salt intake alone; they must “harness” the food industry because processed and packaged foods are the primary source of sodium in many diets. The WHO therefore highlights product reformulation, category‑wide sodium targets and collaboration with manufacturers as critical tools to bring population intake down.

This focus on reformulation fits squarely with SALTWELL’s role as a leading partner to the global food industry. For almost 20 years, the SALINITY and SALTWELL companies have been helping brands cut sodium while improving taste. Our natural salts contain up to 40% less sodium than standard salt but delivers the same natural salty flavour and functionality, giving manufacturers a ready‑made solution that sits perfectly within the ‘harness industry’ pillar.

Labelling, regulation and clean‑label solutions

The WHO document also emphasises supportive policies such as front‑of‑pack labelling, marketing restrictions for high‑salt foods and the use of nutrition profiling to drive healthier product portfolios. These measures encourage or compel manufacturers to reduce sodium while making it easier for consumers to choose lower‑salt options.

SALTWELL’s clean‑label advantage is particularly relevant here. Our ingredient is a natural salt approved in North America as sea salt, and can often be used 1:1 in place of standard salt. That means manufacturers can achieve meaningful sodium reductions, improve Nutri‑Score (“traffic‑light”) ratings, and move towards WHO or national salt targets without lengthy ingredient lists or compromised flavour.

Public health impact and potassium balance

The WHO notes that lowering salt intake to recommended levels could prevent millions of deaths each year. Research highlighted in SALTWELL’s materials shows that high sodium intake often coincides with low potassium, a combination that further elevates blood pressure and cardiovascular risk.

SALTWELL’s salts come from a unique hypersaline source where sodium and potassium and trace minerals crystallise together, yielding a single grain that compared to standard salt is naturally lower in sodium by 35-40% . The natural balance supports the broader public‑health aim of improving the sodium–potassium mineral ratio in the diet while allowing food manufacturers to maintain the taste, texture and functionality of typical salt.

Practical implications for manufacturers

For food manufacturers, the WHO paper’s key practical implications include:

Reformulation is no longer optional: sodium targets and monitoring are likely to expand across categories such as bread, snacks, cheese and prepared meals.
Taste remains non‑negotiable: consumer acceptance is essential, and solutions that allow 1:1 replacement of traditional salt while preserving or improving flavour will be critical to successful reformulation.
Clean label and labelling scores matter: as front‑of‑pack systems and transparency grow, reducing sodium without adding artificial ingredients or complicated declarations becomes a competitive advantage.

SALTWELL’s naturally low‑sodium sea salt addresses each of these needs by enabling significant sodium reduction, maintaining sensorial quality and supporting cleaner labels and improved nutrition profiles.

A shared agenda: from global guidance to real products

The WHO’s “The Salt Habit” paper is a call to action for governments, industry and consumers to change how the world uses salt. By providing a clear framework and evidence base for sodium reduction, it sets the direction of travel for regulation, procurement standards and public expectations around healthier food.

For SALTWELL, this represents both responsibility and opportunity: as a natural, globally available salt, naturally with 35-40% less sodium, the company is well placed to help manufacturers translate WHO guidance into everyday products that support better cardiovascular health without sacrificing taste. In practice, partnering with solutions like SALTWELL can turn the high‑level goals of the SHAKE framework into tangible sodium reductions on supermarket shelves. And in turn, into fewer strokes and heart attacks worldwide.

As the SALTWELL Technical Sales and Global Accounts Manager, Andrew Arbuthnott sees first-hand how policy decisions are shaping the approach of food manufacturers.

“We are witnessing a fundamental shift. Governments are moving from encouraging change to salt and sodium levels to requiring it. Retailers are starting to comply and thousands of subsequent brands are taking notice. That changes the conversation for the entire food industry, especially towards natural ingredients that can immediately achieve significant reductions in sodium content without compromising on flavour or function.”

“Consumers don’t accept compromise. If nutritionally improved products don’t taste nice, they don’t succeed. The ingredient solution must be natural and must deliver both nutritional improvement in the form of reduced sodium and satisfaction in the form of taste.”

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