Heinz has made a significant cut to the salt content of its reduced sugar and salt Tomato Ketchup, in light of growing consumer desire to eat less sodium and fears over childhood obesity.
Rolling out this month in 435g and 665g bottles (rsp: £1.99 and £2.59), the reformulated variant has changed its name to Heinz Tomato Ketchup 50% Less Sugar & Salt, from 50% Less Sugars & 25% Less Salt. It contains 0.9g of salt per 100g – having previously offered 1.3g. The original, table sauce contains 1.8g.
The change to the healthier option comes on the back of a 34.4% rise in value sales to £7.7m on volumes up 41.5% [Nielsen 52 w/e 8 October 2016]. Heinz attributed the success to shoppers being increasingly aware of their daily intake of sugar and salt – with 39% actively choosing to cut back on sodium, according to the grocery giant. Earlier this week, a ComRes survey found just over a fifth of British adults backed extending the government’s soft drinks levy to high-salt grocery products in an effort to combat obesity among children.
The revamped Ketchup variant delivered “100% Heinz taste” without the use of artificial sweeteners or other additives, said Kraft Heinz brand manager Chris Isaac. “Health is important, but so is taste.”
There were no immediate plans to cut the salt and sugar in classic Tomato Ketchup, he added – though the variant, which has suffered a 5.4% sales slump [Nielsen], had seen its sugar reduced by 8% and its salt by 40% over the past 10 years, “in line with consumer tastes”.
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