Rise to the Sodium Reduction Challenge

Did you know that 75% of women and 95% of men in the US exceed the recommended daily tolerable upper intake of sodium1?  Shocking, yes.  Surprising? Not really when you stop to think about the speed at which our society moves which directly corresponds to the amount of fast food, convenience food and snacks that are consumed each day by Americans.

So the trick for product developers is to make food taste great while keeping it healthy AND with reduced sodium. Good taste requires ingredients that can impart savory, salty and umami taste enhancement. Taste enhancement is something that we here at Nikken spend a lot of time experimenting with, and we are having great success.

Our food technologists explore and create some wonderful reduced sodium recipes with our products. And how they accomplish it is pretty amazing: they use some unexpected ingredients that can help you reach your targets. From Roasted Chinese Cabbage Extract Powder to Shiitake Extract Powder to Komi™ Powder, many of Nikken’s ingredients are great tools for sodium reduction. We’ve even created a pantry of targeted ingredient solutions, highlighted here for all your reduced-salt formulation needs. And you can easily request samples as well.

Since we haven’t yet been formally introduced, my name is David Chatterton. I recently joined the Nikken sales team, and I would like to share a little about myself…

What is the best thing about your job at Nikken? That is easy: the wide range of experiences that my days can offer. One day I get to be creative in the test kitchen developing new product ideas and formulations. Then some are spent traveling, meeting new and existing customers with Nikken team members.  What is not to love!

What is your favorite food trend right now?  I really dig the local, farm to table thing.  It’s seasonal, fresh, and supports your region.

What is your favorite restaurant venue?  I love sweets and I love breakfast…so a local bakery that makes fresh pastries and confectioneries makes me smile!

What is the best thing you ever ate?  That is tough as I like to think of myself as a foodie… but my father-in-law is a pit master and makes an awesome smoked pork shoulder!

What’s your favorite recipe that’s been created in the Nikken kitchen? Um, hum… that is tough let me think…. CHOCOLATE MISO AIR COOKIES!!!

What’s your favorite TV drama series? I like garbage reality TV, right now… let’s see Top Chef, for sure…

1Institute for Medicine