That's excellent. Thank you.
I would like to use this introduction to focus on some of the actions, including the regulatory actions, that will help address the serious public health concerns related to overconsumption of sodium in the Canadian food supply. These actions include both actions that the government has already undertaken and further actions that Health Canada is considering.
Health Canada is the federal health authority responsible for establishing policies, setting standards and regulations, conducting health risk assessments, and providing advice and information on the safety and nutritional value of foods available for sale in Canada. These tools, whether they are regulatory or non-regulatory in nature, are used to ensure the safety of the Canadian food supply and to ensure that this food supply, as safe as it is, continues to be a major contributor in protecting and promoting Canadians' health.
The serious adverse health outcomes related to overconsumption of sodium have been a concern for Health Canada for a number of years. During the development of the labelling regulations that came into effect in 2007, it was clearly recognized that providing clear information to consumers on the labels of prepackaged foods could be an important first step in reducing consumption and intake of sodium by Canadians.
Mandatory labelling regulations were therefore established. These regulations require the total sodium content in the product to be included in what we know as the “nutrition facts table”. It is also required that a second value be included on the nutrition facts table, and that's the percentage of the daily value of sodium that a single serving of food would provide. This allows consumers to identify products that are higher or potentially lower in sodium content, and of course enables consumers to make choices among these products.
A second labelling tool is also included in the new labelling regulations. Rules were established about the amounts of sodium in foods labelled as "low in sodium", "salt-free" and "reduced in sodium".
Further, a health claim was established that could be used on products that are low in sodium and high in potassium, linking a diet high in such foods with a reduced risk of high blood pressure. With these additional claims, consumers can easily identify and choose foods that are low in sodium. These claims allow food manufacturers to highlight the positive aspects of their products, and motivate competition and low-sodium product reformulation. Labelling and information to consumers was only a first step. It was felt that it could be a powerful tool to help reduce sodium intakes, but would probably only take us part of the way.
It was recognized that further action may be needed to use additional regulatory and non-regulatory tools to intervene at the food supply level.
In support of the work of the sodium working group, Health Canada scientists have also undertaken analysis to help improve our understanding of the sources and the levels of intake of sodium in Canada. It is clear from this analysis that over-consumption of sodium is a problem for both children and adults.
Canadians age one year and older on average consume about 3,400 milligrams of sodium per day. This is to be compared to the upper limit of intake that has been set for sodium, which is at 2,300 milligrams per day for adults and 1,500 to 1,900 milligrams per day for children. In fact, the amount of sodium that is considered to be adequate to support its role for normal healthy functioning actually ranges between 1,000 and 1,500 milligrams, and that's of course again depending on age.
Clearly, and to no one's surprise, the intakes of sodium in Canada were found to be higher than what is recommended and continue to represent a public health concern.
Additional analysis was undertaken to determine the sources of sodium intake and again to help us to identify where intervention in the food supply might be the most effective. In fact, it has been reported that in the North American diet the vast majority of the sodium is coming from processed food. It's approximately 77% that comes from processed foods. Only about 11% of the sodium intake comes from additions by the consumers at the table or during cooking. This confirmed that additional action was needed to intervene at the level of the food supply.
As Dr. Hutchinson mentioned, last month the food supply subcommittee of the sodium working group, along with Health Canada, held several meetings with several food industry stakeholders, including major food industry associations in the country. These meetings aimed to initiate discussions on sodium reduction targets for processed foods and foods that are sold through food service establishments. There was a clear willingness by industry to work together to set targets and develop steps to achieve these targets.
Also, at the end of September 2009, the sodium working group recommended an interim goal for reduction of average sodium intakes in Canada, and this interim reduction goal was set as 5% per year between now and 2016. Achieving this goal, as was mentioned earlier, would see the average intake in adults be reduced from the current value, estimated at 3,400 milligrams, to about 2,300 milligrams. This is again seen as a first step, and a longer-term goal will still aim to reduce the intakes to about 1,500 milligrams, which is the recommended intake.
It is recognized that government cannot do this alone, and to be truly successful we will need to work with industry and health professionals to take the concrete steps that are needed to reduce sodium in the food supply, steps that are achievable and that will not compromise the ability to reach our public health goals. A number of actions are planned in order to reach this goal.
We are learning how to achieve these goals by looking at some of the best practices internationally. In particular, we are looking at the U.K. In 2006, the U.K. published their first set of targets for sodium levels in foods. Working with industry since then, they have steadily moved toward reducing sodium in their food supply and recently published updated targets.
While the U.K. started from higher intakes than the levels in Canada, we are looking at the steps that they have taken in cooperation with industry to see how these practices might apply in Canada to help us achieve similar gains.
As recommended by the sodium working group, Health Canada will also be reviewing a number of potential regulatory barriers that could impede the food industry from using healthy alternatives to salt and sodium-containing additives. We will also be looking at options on how we can make label statements to highlight gradual sodium-level reductions—for example, to be able to highlight reductions of less than 25%.
Again, November 2009 will be a very active month for consultation with industry in Canada to develop the steps necessary to complete this particular prong of the sodium-reduction strategy. Health Canada will be working with technical experts from the food manufacturing and the food service sector to look at the proposed sodium targets.
Data collected by Health Canada on the current sodium levels in foods will be shared also with the food industry to support setting those reduction targets. These discussions will of course consider the challenges that industry may face to meet these targets and explore possible ways to overcome those challenges. From these and from ongoing discussions with industry, targets will be finalized and a set of feasible and realistic steps will be developed to achieve these targets.
It's clear that there are challenges before us to achieving changes to the food supply—for example, the ubiquitous nature of sodium in the food supply; finding affordable replacements; the use of salt as a tool in food safety applications; and also consumer acceptance. While we appreciate these challenges, the government is committed to reaching these targets using all the tools at our disposal, whether it be the regulatory tools or non-regulatory options.
Thank you.
