Sodium Content and Labelling Completeness of Packaged Foods and Beverages in Kenya
Loading...
Date
2021
Authors
Ndanuko, Rhoda
Maganja, Damian
Kibet, Alex
Coyle, Daisy H.
Kimiywe, Judith
Raubenheimer, David
Marklund, Matti
Wu, Jason H. Y.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
MDPI
Abstract
Increased consumption of unhealthy processed foods, particularly those high in sodium, is
a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Nutrition information on packaged foods can help
guide consumers toward products with less sodium, however the availability of nutrition information
on foods sold in Kenya is currently unknown. The aims of this study were to estimate the proportion
of packaged foods and beverages displaying nutrition information for sodium and determine the
amount of sodium in packaged foods available for sale in Kenya. Data was collected in 2019 from
five retail supermarkets in Nairobi. The availability of sodium information provided on packaged
products and the sodium content were recorded. As secondary analyses, we compared sodium
content labelling of products in Kenya by manufacturing location and the sodium content of products
available in Kenya and South Africa. A total of 6003 packaged products in 56 food categories
were identified. Overall, 39% of products displayed sodium content, though the availability of
labelling varied widely between food categories, with coverage in main categories ranging from
0% (yoghurts and yoghurt drinks) to 86% (breakfast cereals). Food categories with the highest
median sodium content were herbs and spices (9120 mg/100 g), sauces (1200 mg/100 g) and meat
alternatives (766 mg/100 g) although wide variabilities were often observed within categories.
Imported products were more likely to provide information on sodium than locally produced
products (81% compared to 26%) and reported higher median sodium levels (172 mg/100 g compared
to 96 mg/100 g). Kenyan products reported a higher median sodium content than South African
products in six categories while South African products had higher median sodium in 20 categories,
with considerable variation in median sodium content between countries in some categories. These
findings highlight considerable potential to improve the availability of sodium information on
packaged products in Kenya and to introduce reformulation policies to reduce the amount of sodium
in the Kenyan food supply
Description
An Article Published in Nutrients
Keywords
Kenya, Nutrition labelling, Salt, Sodium, Packaged foods, Processed foods
Citation
: Ndanuko, R.; Maganja, D.; Kibet, A.; Coyle, D.H.; Kimiywe, J.; Raubenheimer, D.; Marklund, M.; Wu, J.H.Y. Sodium Content and Labelling Completeness of Packaged Foods and Beverages in Kenya. Nutrients 2021, 13, 1385. https://doi.org/10.3390/ nu13041385