PepsiCo to reduce sodium and deliver more diverse ingredients in foods portfolio

As part of PepsiCo’s ongoing efforts to meet the nutrition goals the company has set for itself as part of its PepsiCo Positive (pep+) plans, the global beverage and food provider announced that it aims for at least 75% of its global convenient foods portfolio volume to meet or be below category sodium targets by 2030.

According to a release by PepsiCo on this announcement, the company says excess sodium intake is a leading risk factor for diet-associated disease and disability, prompting global public health authorities to call on the food industry to reduce sodium in their products. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends less than 2000mg of sodium per day for adults.

To that end, PepsiCo is setting a new sodium reduction goal, with category targets that consider guidance from public health experts including the World Health Organization and are approximately 15-30% lower than the company's current target for key convenient food categories.

For example, PepsiCo is aiming now for a a 15% sodium reduction in its U.S. Lay's Classic Potato Chips, which would result in a sodium level of 140mg per 28g serving. According to the U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, the sodium intake in daily diets from savory snacks is currently around 3%.

Along with the goal of reducing sodium intake, PepsiCo is also pushing forward in its plans to increase consumption of diverse ingredients, such as legumes, whole grains, plant-based proteins, fruits and vegetables, and nuts and seeds, all of which can help promote a more nutritionally diverse diet.

The company aims to deliver 145 billion portions of diverse ingredients annually in its global convenient foods portfolio by 2030. Each portion will provide approximately 10% of the suggested daily amount of a diverse ingredient.

“We are in a constant cycle of innovation to reimagine the foods we make and how we make them so we can bring better choices to our consumers, without ever compromising on taste,” says René Lammers, executive vice-president and chief science officer for PepsiCo. “Consumers enjoy our products more than one billion times a day, which provides an opportunity – and the privilege – to have an impact. We set a high bar to improve the nutritional profile of our products, and these new goals reaffirm our ambitions.”