21/11/08 The annual European Frost & Sullivan award in the category “Functional Ingredients” was presented to Jungbunzlauer for their sub4salt product.sub4salt can help food manufacturers to reduce sodium by 25 to 50% in various food products. This product numerous advantages to reduce sodium in the daily diet and has earned a total market acceptance. The salty taste profile is similar to salt and without any undesired off-notes as there are for many other salt reduction systems. Additionally, sub4salt offers a comparable functionality as salt to manufacturers.

With its easy handling properties and the comparable dosage level, sub4salt is an optimal choice for tasty low sodium products. sub4salt belongs to the so-called “Healthy Choices” portfolio of the Jungbunzlauer Group, which additionally consists of highly bioavailable organic mineral salts of calcium, magnesium and potassium as well as Erythritol (a novel bulk sweetener, which just recently was granted approval in the EU).

“The 2008 Frost & Sullivan Ingredient of the Year Award in the European functional ingredients market is presented to Jungbunzlauer for successfully introducing sub4salt in the European food additives market. This highly beneficial food additive is used as a substitute for salt and is capable of reducing sodium content in processed foods by up to 50 per cent. The sub4salt is superior to the common substitutes of salt as its usage does not compromise with food taste and quality. It is the only product available in the market that is a 1:1 replacement for salt”, said Natasha Telles, Frost & Sullivan’s Research Analyst.

“Its competitive advantages as compared to other products have helped it realise immense market acceptance and is recognised as the most promising ingredient of the year. It is far more superior to the few competing products available in the European functional ingredients market. This is due to its ability to replace salt (excessive intake of which causes health hazards) completely at a competitive price without sacrificing quality and resulting in side-effects such as bitter, metallic taste. It has been tested by various panels of experts and success proved across a host of application areas such as bakery, meat products, snacks and soups”, Telles added.

Frost & Sullivan note that the daily diet of an average adult in Western countries contains 12 grams (g) of salt (sodium chloride), which comes mainly from processed foods (77 per cent of sodium is consumed from processed food). Various researches conducted across the globe suggest reduction of salt intake to 6 g (that is at least 25 per cent sodium reduction) for a healthy life as there exists a clear linkage between sodium uptake and high blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases. However, reducing sodium in products is a major challenge for manufacturers as it negatively impacts palatability. For instance, yeast extracts used as salt replacement yields a broth-like flavor and smell. Mono sodium glutamate (MSG), another salt substitute results in a meaty taste and is undesirable in some countries. Similarly, potassium chloride used as a common substitute for salt produces a bitter metallic taste and therefore these additives are rendered inadequate for the purpose.

Introduced in the market in 2006, sub4salt was developed in the framework of Jungbunzlauer’s HealthyChoices portfolio. This portfolio offers solutions as per prevailing food manufacturing trends such as sugar reduction or mineral fortification. The emergent solutions of this program help the company to meet new regulatory requirements such as the Health Claims Directive.

Jungbunzlauer sub4salt complies with the new EC regulation 1924/2006 pertaining to nutrition and health. It is supplied in agreement with the latest purity requirements of the Food Chemicals Codex (FCC) and the Commission Directive 96/77/EC. It contains only permitted additives which comply with the EC Directive 95/2/EC. It contains 25±3 per cent sodium and 10±3 per cent potassium.

According to Ftrost & Sullivan in the European functional ingredients market, sub4salt has about four competing salt replacement products with various attributes to eliminate the side-effects of common substitute products of salt such as yeast extracts, MSG and potassium chloride. However, no other competing product of sub4salt has yet been able to match its effectiveness and price competitiveness.

“Jungbunzlauer is proud to receive the “Ingredient of the Year – Award” for sub4salt as this award certifies the outstanding advantages of the product and the company’s ability to develop innovative solutions for healthier products. The award will be an important marketing tool for the promotion of Jungbunzlauer’s “HealthyChoices” functional ingredients,” Hans - Joerg Gress, CEO, Jungbunzlauer.