Food & Health Alliance

Since 2006, Food Standards Agency has been running a public health campaign to raise consumer awareness about the health implications of consuming too much salt.

Campaign details

Phase one of the campaign in 2004 used the headline message that ‘too much salt is bad for your heart’ to raise general awareness of salt in the diet.

Phase two in 2005 introduced the ‘eat no more than 6g a day’ message and advised consumers to always check the label.

In 2006 a maintenance campaign was run in preparation for phase 3 of the campaign which began in 2007. This phase reinforced the previous messages but also introduced a new question: ‘Is your food full of it?’ – a reference to the fact that 75% of the salt we eat is already in the food we buy.

So has the campaign made a difference?

That’s where evaluation comes in. Each one of the phases was evaluated by an independent company using a UK representative survey of 2000 adults. The results are very encouraging, suggesting the campaign has not only helped increase awareness but also changed behaviour and encouraged the reformulation of some food products.

Evalauation of phase one

Research into phase one of the campaign revealed that just under a quarter of respondents claimed to have seen the advertising. Respondents aged 50 and above were more likely to have seen advertising, while the 16-25 age group were least likely. The level was higher in Wales, with 40% of respondents claiming to have seen some advertising, compared with 27% in Scotland and 23% in England.  

In addition tracking research showed that the number of people claiming to have changed their behaviour was still increasing five months later. Figures dropped back after this period but were still significantly higher than pre-phase one.

Evaluation of phase two

Phase two of the campaign was targeted at women aged 35- 60, in socio-economic groups C1, C2 and D, as the main food purchasers. This phase was very effective in communicating the message that you should eat no more than 6g of salt per day, with a tenfold increase in awareness from phase one.  Of the different methods of advertising, television produced the highest awareness level. The proportion of people who look for the salt content in food also increased, rising to 41% among women. Following the campaign half of all respondents claimed to be trying to cut down on salt.

Evaluation of phase three

Evaluation of phase three of the campaign showed it was continuing to affect behaviour with a further increase among consumers claiming to check the label to find out the salt content. During the campaign, traffic to the FSA’s website www. salt.gov.uk rose by 44% with over 66,000 daily visits.

Total impact

Overall the high visibility of all three phases of the campaign has increased consumer awareness of the health risks associated with a high salt intake and recent consumer research indicates a continued downward trend in the amount of salt consumed by people in the UK. The new findings indicate that the UK’s average daily salt consumption has fallen from 9.5g to 8.6g, which reflects an overall drop of 0.9g since the National Nutrition and Diet Survey in 2000-1. In 2006, the urinary sodium survey for Scotland indicated an average intake of 9.1g, down by 0.4g from 2000/01. This data will be updated in 2009 when the next urinary sodium survey for Scotland will be carried out.

Additional benefits

The campaigns also raised the profile of salt in the food industry and have encouraged the development of partnerships between industry, retailers and NGOs. Many major retailers and manufacturers have now committed themselves to reducing salt in their products and several have already met the initial targets set in 2006.