KANSAS CITY — Adding salt (sodium chloride) efficiently makes snacks savory, but Americans generally eat too much salt. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025 recommend less than 2,300 mg of sodium per day. The average American eats over 3,400 mg.

Reducing sodium while keeping snacks savory remains a challenge for the food industry, and research and development with alternatives continues. Ingredients like monosodium glutamate (MSG) may add an umami taste to snack seasonings. The shape of the salt crystal may enhance the salty taste, meaning less may be used to achieve the desired salty taste. Potassium chloride also has been shown to replace sodium chloride, but a metallic aftertaste must be avoided.

MSG for umami

MSG has proven effective in adding umami flavor, and the ingredient’s perception among consumers appears to be improving.

“There are several decades of research showing that umami is an effective sodium reduction tool in numerous applications, including grain-based foods,” said Kathy Legatos, senior principal scientist, applications development at Ajinomoto Health and Nutrition, Itasca, Ill. “In 2022, the University of Illinois and Dr. Soo Lee published studies that show the benefits of using umami in snacks, like puffs and chips, and white and wheat bread.”

She added, “Through our own evaluation at Ajinomoto Health and Nutrition, we have preliminary evidence that shows umami works well to reduce sodium in buns, pita bread and crackers.”

Studies conducted by Ajinomoto achieved sodium reduction of 20% to 30% in applications like crackers and pita bread by using MSG.

Umami means “delicious” in Japanese, said Alex Woo, PhD, founder and chief executive officer of W20 Food Innovation. Among the 40 taste receptors identified in the human mouth, only one involves umami, he said in a webinar about sodium reduction put on last October by Kerry. Umami detection happens when glutamate goes through the umami taste receptor, Woo said, adding that replacing one-third of salt with MSG has been shown to reduce sodium by 25% in applications. Natural glutamate may be found in sources such as soy sauce and in animal-based sources such as fish sauce, and chicken broth.

Casting a shadow over perceptions of MSG was research dating from the April 4, 1968, issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, which contained an article about “Chinese-restaurant syndrome,” which involves some consumers reporting symptoms such as headaches, sweating and fluttering heartbeats after eating food containing MSG. Yet the International Food Information Council expects MSG to influence American cuisine in 2024. Scientific studies have debunked the myth of “Chinese restaurant syndrome,” and celebrity chefs and home cooks are embracing the umami-rich ingredient, according to IFIC.

“MSG has been unfairly demonized for far too long,” said Tony Flood, senior director of food ingredient communications at IFIC. “We’re predicting consumers will continue to reevaluate its place in the kitchen, especially those looking to reduce sodium while maintaining flavor.”

Ajinomoto points to a Mintel study showing 75% of global social media conversations about MSG was positive between 2018-23. Since 2018 the Ajinomoto Group has worked with nutrition and culinary experts to explain MSG.

ResearchAndMarkets, Dublin, forecast the global glutamic acid market to have a compound annual growth rate of 5.1% to reach $16.3 million. Glutamic acid is one of the components responsible for umami taste, often described as savory or meaty, according to ReseachAndMarkets.

MSG, disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate, hydrolyzed vegetable proteins, and yeast extracts all may provide umami in applications, said Steve Zimmerman, senior director of technical sales, at NuTek Natural Ingredients, Omaha, Neb.

“However, as consumer demand for cleaner labels continues to increase, product developers turn to natural alternatives,” he said. “Natural flavors derived through fermentation can provide umami as a clean label alternative.”

NuTek produces plant-based, natural flavor systems through fermentation and cooking techniques that deliver umami taste, increase salty flavor perception and contain 85% less sodium than salt, Zimmerman said.

The shape of salt

Biting into a snack like a pretzel or a cracker provides an initial, upfront profile of salty taste. Changing the shape of the salt crystal may reduce sodium in this kind of application.

Minneapolis-based Cargill offers Alberger salt, a uniquely shaped sodium chloride crystal, said Janice Johnson, PhD, food technical adviser for Cargill. Because of its shape, consumers perceive Alberger salt to be saltier than it is, she said.

“In topical applications like seasoning coatings on snack products, we’ve found that particle size and shape can have a big impact on sodium reduction,” Johnson said. “Alberger flour salt works great in these applications as its multi-faceted, pyramid and cubed-agglomerates and unique crystalline shape provide more surface area than native cubed-shaped salt crystals (table salt). As a result, it delivers a more intense salty upfront flavor and enables brands to use lower amounts of sodium chloride, without impacting consumers’ salty taste perceptions.”

Sodium reduction varies by application. Alberger salt may reduce sodium in chips with a salty topping by up to 20%, Johnson said.

Solving aftertaste issues

Some sodium chloride alternatives, like potassium chloride, have been associated with a bitter aftertaste. Cargill’s Potassium Pro Ultrafine has a fine particle size, which results in quick dissolution, Johnson said.

“Our research suggests it delivers the salty taste consumers expect without the bitter and metallic notes associated with larger potassium particle sizes,” she said.

Alberger salt and Potassium Pro Ultrafine may be combined in a fine seasoning blend for topical applications.

NuTek Natural Ingredients uses a proprietary washing and drying process with its potassium chloride ingredient that eliminates the need for flavor modulators to reduce bitterness, Zimmerman said.

“Extensive third-party sensory studies validate consumer acceptance of NuTek’s value-added solutions in a broad spectrum of food applications, with respect to flavor and product quality,” he said. “NuTek’s solutions have a range of labeling options, including ‘potassium salt’, ‘sea salt’ and ‘mineral salt.’”

Culinary salts, including Himalayan pink salt, sea salt and kosher salt, have been shown to offer new flavors in snacks.

“NuTek has options for these mineral and sea salts that deliver the benefit of culinary salts, but also reduce sodium up to 30%,” Zimmerman said. “Many snack brands have also experimented in granulation size to impact the perception of saltiness without adding more salt.”

Formulators should take a holistic approach when reducing sodium, said Kay Marshallsay, PhD, global portfolio director, taste fermentation for Kerry, in the webinar last October. Taking out sodium may bring an imbalance of taste profiles in areas like texture, bitterness, succulence, sweetness, flavors and zing, she said.

“All of these, we have to deal with the challenges holistically to find a solution that’s consumer acceptable,” she said.