Thank you for the opportunity to address the committee today.
I'm sorry that there hasn't been quite enough time to translate fully all of our opening remarks for today's meeting. They are currently in translation and will be provided to the clerk by the end of this week.
In October 2007, the Minister of Health announced that the Government of Canada would establish an expert working group. The Sodium Working Group, the SWG, was established in early 2008 to develop and oversee the implementation of a strategy to reduce the overall consumption of sodium by Canadians. The SWG is working on a three-pronged strategy, which will include education, research and voluntary sodium reduction in processed foods and restaurants and food services products.
The SWG mandate, its terms of reference and membership list are available on the website. I believe you all have these documents. There is an error in the list of members: I am not on the list. As president of this group, my name should be added to the list.
The group has met in person or by teleconference 6 times in the last 18 months, initially focusing on establishing a common knowledge base for all members including supplying information on current activities across Canada.
The preparatory stage was completed by May 2008. Baseline data on sodium levels in the diets of Canadians and on the primary sources of dietary sodium were obtained from the Canadian Community Health Survey. The synopsis of the U.K. Food Standards Agency's program on salt reduction was prepared, and an It's Your Health fact sheet was also developed. I believe we distributed as well the It's Your Health document on sodium for all of you.
The assessment stage is also being completed. An important element of this data-gathering phase was an expert public consultation held in February 2009, where invited experts described the challenges and opportunities in sodium reduction, including those from the United Kingdom and from the European Union, who describe their experience with and plans for sodium reduction in their jurisdictions.
The sodium working group also heard from industry groups, social marketing experts, and health organizations.
Work on the strategic framework phase began in the spring of 2009 at the May 2009 meeting where the SWG identified the elements under each of the three prongs of the strategy and formed focused subcommittees for every prong. Substantive progress was made through the summer and the subcommittees reported on their progress at the September SWG meeting.
The first subcommittee, which deals with the voluntary reduction in foods, has embarked on developing a Canadian approach on reducing sodium in foods by using best practices from other countries such as the United Kingdom. Consultations are also under way with health authorities from New York City.
Information sessions were held in September to inform industry about the need for sodium reduction, sources of sodium in the diet, and the various approaches to reducing sodium in processed foods and foods sold in restaurants and food service establishments. As a follow-up, discussions with food industry stakeholders will be undertaken shortly to set sodium reduction targets and a schedule for the voluntary reduction of sodium levels in food products.
For the education prong, work is under way to develop a national public awareness and education campaign to educate and inform Canadians on sodium and the health consequences linked to high levels of sodium intake and to increase consumer demand for foods lower in sodium.
With respect to research, a research agenda is being developed to support the food industry in reformulating foods lower in sodium, to facilitate behaviour change in Canadians, and to monitor and evaluate the effects and impacts of the strategy on the health and well-being of Canadians. In conjunction with CIHR, a research summit is being planned for January 2010.
At our September 2009 meeting, the working group members also agreed to an interim sodium intake goal of 2,300 milligrams per day by 2016. We must say that right now the levels of consumption for Canadians are around 3,400 milligrams. In the long term, we are moving towards a goal of approximately 1,500 milligrams.
A detailed draft of the three-pronged strategy will be discussed by the working group members at a meeting in December 2009. The working group expects to complete its report by mid-2010.