Where would sodium reduction be without technical experts who spend hours, days and months supporting food producers? In this series we sit down for a coffee & chat with local sodium reduction experts and partners. Our fifth stop in this series is Les Preses, Spain; with Mr Joaquim Vives.
Name: Joaquim Vives
Role: Director
Company: Solina Iberica S. L. U.
Location: Spain
Expertise area: Savory applications
Qualifications: Biologist and Master degree in Food Industry Management
Tell us briefly what you do?
I do the management of the Spanish affiliate of Solina and also some commercial responsibility managing some accounts directly.
How long have you been working with sodium reduction solutions?
Let’s say on and off for more than 10 years, but more directly, last 6.
How long have you been working specifically with SALTWELL’s solution?
Around 5 years now.
Tell us about your experience of working with SALTWELL as a sodium reduction solution?
My experience is that SALTWELL is the perfect sodium reduction solution because it is salt, so the functionality of salt is preserved. But also, the taste is so close to normal salt, without the defaults of a blend NaCl + KCl. In my experience no other solution can offer this.
What types of applications do you work with the most?
Traditional meat products, cooked and/or fermented.
What do your clients say about the applications you help develop with SALTWELL?
They say to me that SALTWELL allows them to keep the original characteristics of the meat products done, without any yield reduction but also allowing to offer something low in sodium that can be so close to the original that the consumer do not taste or see the difference.
How do you compare the functional and flavour performance of SALTWELL to other solutions?
As explained, nothing can be better than SALTWELL if the objective is the sodium reduction keeping the same functionality and taste than the original versions because we can consider the finished products have no significant differences vs. the ones done with NaCl.
What trends have you seen recently and where do you see the Spanish market heading with regards to salt and sodium reduction?
The Spanish trend is a very simple one: reduce Na in all food preparations, following the European trends and good practices.
How can people get in touch with you?
Contact Solina Spain, asking for Joaquim Vives. Or calling me or writing to my e-mail directly [ +34 97269 20 16 / joaquim.vives@solina.com]
