Reduction of Salt and Sugar in Food
The Government has all along attached great importance to the work of reducing salt and sugar intake among Hong Kong citizens. Excessive salt intake increases the risk of hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke and coronary heart disease, etc., while excessive sugar intake increases the risk of obesity, heart diseases and diabetes etc. The Government aims to lessen the burden of non-communicable diseases on society through reduction of salt and sugar intake.
The World Health Organization recommends that the daily intake of salt for adults should be less than 5 grams (i.e. less than one teaspoon of salt or 2 grams of sodium), whereas the amount of free sugar consumed daily by adults and children should be less than 10% of the daily energy intake (for an adult having a 2000-Kcal diet per day, the daily free sugar intake should be less than 50 grams).
According to the Report of Population Health Survey (PHS) 2020-2022 published by the Department of Health in 2023, local persons aged 15 to 84 had an average daily salt intake of 8.4 grams, while the report of PHS 2014-15 revealed that the average daily salt intake for the said age group was 8.8 grams. In addition, the public surveys conducted by the Committee on Reduction of Salt and Sugar in Food in 2020/21 and 2021/22 showed that public awareness and action toward reducing salt and sugar intake had improved in 2021/22.
The Committee on Reduction of Salt and Sugar in Food
The Committee on Reduction of Salt and Sugar in Food (the Committee) was established in 2015, with the following terms of reference:
- - assessment and monitoring of the local situation;
- - setting out priority areas for reduction of salt and sugar in food and formulation of local reduction targets; and
- - promotion and public education strategy.
The current Chairman and Members of the Committee on Reduction of Salt and Sugar in Food (15 March 2024 – 14 March 2027) are as follows:
| Chairman : | Mr Cheung Leong |
| Non-official Members : | Mr Dion Chen Ms Christa Cheung Shuk-fung Mr Chong Yue-kwan Mr Chow Tsz-lit Mr Rayman Chui Man-wai, J.P. Ms May Chung Mei-ling Mr William Hung Wai-lai Mr Carrel Kam Lin-wang Ms Dorcas Lau Shing-suet Mrs Linda Lau Hung Man-yin Ms Leung Wai-yan Ms Alice Ng Yim-ting Professor Wong Man-sau Dr Leslie Wong Pak-yuen Miss Danica Yau Ching Mr Yip Siu-kwong |
| Ex-officio Members : | Representative of Environment and Ecology Bureau Representative of Food and Environmental Hygiene Department Representative of Department of Health Representative of Education Bureau |
Contacts
For further information about the Committee on Reduction of Salt and Sugar in Food, please contact the Secretariat at:
| Address : | Secretariat, Committee on Reduction of Salt and Sugar in Food, 17/F, East Wing, Central Government Offices, 2 Tim Mei Avenue, Tamar, Hong Kong |
| Telephone : | 3509 8969 |
| Fax : | 2136 3282 |
| Email : | crss@eeb.gov.hk |
Five directions to promote reduction of salt and sugar across the city
The Environment and Ecology Bureau (EEB), the Centre for Food Safety (CFS), the Department of Health (DH) and the Committee have been committed to promoting salt and sugar reduction along the following five directions:
1. Starting from an early age
The Education Bureau coordinates annual seminars for kindergarten, primary and secondary school teachers, where CFS’s scientific officers and DH’s dietitians share their knowledge on salt and sugar reduction and healthy eating respectively, and staff of EEB (Food Branch) introduce less-salt-and-sugar teaching kits and other educational resources. The Food Branch also organised “Less Salt and Sugar Cooking Class for Primary Students” and cooperated with District Health Centres (DHC) and DHC expresses to promote the message of salt and sugar reduction at schools.
2. Enhancing transparency of information
We launched the “Salt / Sugar” Label Scheme for Prepackaged Food Products in 2017 to make it easier for the public to identify “low-salt, low-sugar, no-salt and no-sugar” products. As at October 2024, there were about 300 products participating in the Scheme.
3. Encouraging restaurants to reduce salt and sugar
The Less-Salt-and-Sugar Restaurants Scheme was launched in 2019 to encourage restaurants to provide less-salt-and-sugar dishes and options to customers. As at October 2024, there were about 1 230 restaurants participating in the scheme. In addition, the “Less Sugar Friday” campaign was launched in 2020. Customers purchasing sugar-free or less-sugar beverages at the participating teahouses on Fridays can receive a $2 discount. As at October 2024, there were about 120 participating teahouses.
4. Reformulation of prepackaged food
Bread is one of the major sources of sodium (salt) intake for Hong Kong people. Therefore, CFS has been continuously promoting reformulation of prepackaged food to bread manufacturers. The voluntary sodium reduction targets for white bread and wholemeal bread was set and announced in September 2019, with a total of 9 chained bread manufacturers participating in the scheme. The latest market survey conducted in May 2024 showed that all white bread and wholemeal bread met the maximum sodium reduction targets. The voluntary sodium reduction targets have been further extended to non-prepackaged white bread and wholemeal bread since December 2020, targeting smaller local bakeries. The latest market survey conducted in March 2024 revealed that all white bread and wholemeal bread met the maximum reduction targets.
In addition, according to the results of the study on sodium content in dim sum conducted by CFS in 2022, certain types of dim sum were found to contain high levels of sodium. Trade members were advised to reduce the sodium content in dim sum by modifying preparation methods and changing ingredients. A test was conducted between March and April 2024, where participants were recruited to taste standard and reduced-sodium (about 10% to 20% reduction) samples of two types of dim sum (shrimp siu mai and steamed pork ribs with black bean sauce), in order to determine whether detectable sensory differences existed between them. The study findings suggested that there was no perceptible sensory difference between the standard and the reformulated dim sum. This suggested that such range of sodium reduction is acceptable to consumers, and it is feasible for the trade to reduce the sodium content in dim sum. Therefore, we recommend the trade to make reference to CFS’s “Trade Guidelines for Reducing Sodium in Foods” to reduce the sodium content in food through product reformulation and serve sauces in separate containers to allow consumers to add sauces based on their preference.
5. Strengthening publicity and education
The Committee has been carrying out publicity and education work for different communities through various channels, including public surveys, radio broadcasting programmes and television programmes, Announcements in the Public Interest in MTR train compartments, social media promotions, media interviews, youth ambassadors programmes, exhibitions, less-salt-and-sugar cooking classes, online games and teaching kits production etc., targeting schools, restaurants, teahouses, food manufacturers and the general public.