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Study Finds Nearly a Quarter of UK Soups Breach Salt Targets

Branded products dominate the failures, prompting calls for tougher government action.

Overview

  • An Action on Salt and Sugar review of 481 ready-to-eat soups found 23% exceed the voluntary 0.59g-per-100g salt limit that was due by end-2024.
  • Breaches were far more common in branded lines, with 48% over the limit compared with 6% of supermarket own-label soups.
  • The saltiest product identified, Soup Head Tom Yum, contains 1.01g of salt per 100g or 3.03g in a 300g pack, which is more than two McDonald’s cheeseburgers.
  • Under front-of-pack rules, 16% would receive a red salt warning, the average serving contains 1.43g of salt, and 51 products exceed 2g per suggested portion, which may understate actual intake.
  • AoSS is urging stronger incentives and accountability; Daylesford corrected a misprinted label to 0.67g per 100g, while retailers and Heinz cite reformulation efforts and the government points to a modernised nutrient scoring system and advertising curbs.