Soups still contain too much salt

Some soups had a third of the recommended daily amount of salt

Many popular varieties of soup contain a third of a day's recommended amount of salt, a survey shows.

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has set a target of an average 0.6g in a single serving of soup by 2010.

But Consensus Action on Salt and Health (CASH) found almost a quarter of 576 soups analysed contained more than 2g and the average was 1.6g.

The FSA said it was working to reduce salt in foods and salt in soup had fallen by 25% in the past three years.

The average adult should eat no more than 6g of salt a day.

SALT LEVELS PER 100g 1.3g in Baxters Canned Vegetarian Tomato and Orange soup, Morrisons Canned Oxtail and Morrisons Minestrone simmer soup 1.0g in Masterfoods' Seeds of Change organic soups and Crosse and Blackwell Soup Cups 0.8g in Ainsley Harriott, The Co-operative Group and Unilever's Knorr soups 0.7g in Batchelors, Baxters, Loyd Grossman, Morrisons, Somerfield and Waitrose soups 0.12g in Pret a Manger Celeriac Mash Soup

CASH said the high level of "hidden salt" in soup was particularly important as it normally only formed part of a meal - and people often chose to eat soup as the healthy option.

The research covered canned, chilled, packet, pouch, ready-made and instant soups.

Almost half of the soups sampled contained more than the target level of 0.6g salt per 100g.

Consumers looking to buy products with low salt content may also be confused by portion sizes, as the definition of a single portion ranged from 200g (half a standard can of soup), up to 400g, the survey showed.

Wide variation

Professor Graham MacGregor, chair of CASH congratulated the companies who had brought the salt levels in their soups to within the recommended levels.

"The problem is that there are a large number of well-known companies and brands of soup with salt concentrations above the target," he said.

"It means people are inadvertently eating a lot of salt.

"There's a huge difference in the same flavour of soup from different companies.

"There's no technical reason and there's no taste reason."

DANGERS OF TOO MUCH SALT High levels of salt are linked to high blood pressure, which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke Cutting salt intake by just 3g per day can reduce a person's risk of having a stroke or heart attack by one quarter

A spokesperson for the FSA said: "In March 2006, we published voluntary salt reduction targets for 85 categories of food (including soups), which are to be achieved by 2010.

"The targets were set at levels that are challenging for industry yet achievable and will make a difference to consumers' salt intakes.

"However Cash's survey highlights that there is much more that can be done and we will continue to encourage this."

Julian Hunt, Food and Drinks Federation director of communications said: "The food industry has done a fantastic job in reducing the levels of salt in soup - something CASH does recognise.

"Industry is committed to working with the FSA towards its 2010 target.

"Additionally, a large number of manufacturers are now putting Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA) information on the front of packs which clearly shows people the amount of salt in that product."