Amid Growing Salt Storm, Kraft Offers 10 Percent Cut

(March 18) -- Kraft Foods Inc., the country's largest food manufacturer, will cut the salt content of its products by an average of 10 percent within two years, the company announced Wednesday.

It's a decision that coincides with mounting concern among health experts that the American dinner plate -- or takeout container -- is laden with dangerous levels of sodium.

The Kraft plan would eliminate more than 10 million pounds of salt in over 1,000 products, including brands like Oreo, Oscar Mayer and Nabisco. By the company's own admission, the move makes sense for more than just consumer health.

"We are reducing sodium because it's good for consumers and, if done properly, it's good for business," Rhonda Jordan, a Kraft representative, said in a statement.

Kraft's announcement follows on the heels of other recent salt-reduction tactics by major food makers. In October, ConAgra Foods Inc. announced plans to eliminate 20 percent of the salt from its products, which include Slim Jim and Chef Boyardee, within five years. And Campbell Soup Co., which already sell dozens of low-salt or salt-free products, will take steps to further the process, the company announced in December.

But will Kraft and Co.'s minor tweaks add up to a major difference for consumer health?

After all, American adults are advised to consume no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day. One serving of Kraft Mac & Cheese contains 930 milligrams -- and most Americans aren't exactly masters of portion control. A 10 percent reduction would still mean more than 830 milligrams of salt in that bowl of packaged pasta.

Then again, a recent study in the Annals of Internal Medicine concluded that if the American diet contained 10 percent less sodium -- the same amount Kraft plans to cut -- we'd eliminate 500,000 heart attacks and 531,000 strokes among adults ages 40 to 85.

But nutritionist and public health advocate Marion Nestle isn't convinced that less salt in our Velveeta will accomplish much in the way of boosting long-term health or improving American nutrition.

"Ten percent -- or even 20 percent -- over the next two years is a nice first step but it won't do much with really salty products, of which Kraft makes plenty," she told AOL News.

What Americans really need, Nestle says, is more fresh food and more physical activity, two important components of long-term health that don't mesh with the processed foods industry.

Nestle attributes the recent salt-reduction announcements to public relations, especially in light of Michelle Obama's ongoing campaign against childhood obesity, which targeted the Grocery Manufacturers Association on Tuesday.

"This is under pressure from Michelle Obama, who is expecting everyone to step up to the plate," Nestle said. "I don't think they would change product formulas if they didn't have to."

And, as Nestle and other health experts often point out, there's more to nutrition than sodium. Packaged foods are often high in saturated fat or cholesterol, both of which are implicated in heart health, and in calories, which are responsible for our expanding waistlines.

But with major food manufacturers unlikely to go anywhere anytime soon, how they handle the changing demands of consumers, and the exhortations of health experts, remains to be seen.

Nestle, for one, thinks the least companies like Kraft can do is be honest about what they're selling.

"I'm of the opinion that junk food is junk food and a little nutrient tweaking isn't going to change that," she said. "Companies have a right to make such things and consumers have a right to buy them. I just don't think companies should be permitted to market them as health foods."