Lucky Me! maker commits to gradual reduction of salt content

Monde Nissin Corporation, which distributes the Lucky Me! brand, has committed to reduce salt in its noodle products as part of the World Instant Noodles Association (WINA), but noted that this should be done gradually so as not to make a major impact on taste.

The company is among the 13 signatories of the Manila Declaration announced on Wednesday, which outlines key commitments covering environmental sustainability, food safety, social issues, and nutrition and health, which includes salt reduction.

According to Monde Nissin CEO and executive vice president Henry Soesanto, the company has already reduced its salt content and will continue to do so, but this should not be detrimental to the products' taste.

“‘Pag ma-reduce mo ‘yung salt, hindi halata. Importante ‘yun. ‘Pag halata, biglang hindi masarap ‘yung noodles mo, kasi nagpe-perk ng taste eh,” he told reporters in an interview in Taguig City on Wednesday.

“‘Pag biglang binawasan mo, hindi masarap, so anong gagawin ng tao? Hindi kumain ng noodles. Anong replacement ng noodles? ‘Yung ibang mas maalat na pagkain,” he added.

(If you reduce the salt, it should not be obvious. That is important. If it is obvious, noodles suddenly aren’t delicious because it doesn't perk one's taste. If you reduce suddenly, it isn’t delicious, so what will people do? They won’t eat noodles. What is the replacement for noodles? Other food that are saltier.)

This comes as Lucky Me! is one of the leading instant noodle makers in the Philippines, serving dry noodles and soup noodles including the Pancit Canton product.

Soesanto said that while salt content should still be reduced, consumer education should also be pushed for them to be informed of the dangers of too much salt, and for them to be able to adjust their taste buds for healthier options.

“Nag-reduce tayo sa Lucky Me!, hindi mo halata. ‘Yun ang dapat. “Pag ni-reduce mo, hindi halata. Unti unti unti unti,” Soesanto said.

“Pero mas importante, edukasyon. Alam ng tao na ‘yung salt hindi okay, ‘yung sugar hindi okay, ‘yung fat hindi okay. ‘Yung ganon, edukasyon is mas importante. Para ‘pag ni-reduce ng Lucky Me! ‘yung salt tanggap ng tao or at least sanay na ‘yung taste buds natin, bawas na sa salt,” he added.

(We reduced in Lucky Me! and it wasn't obvious. That should be the case. When you reduce, you do it gradually. But education is more important -- people should know that [too much] salt, fat, and sugar is not okay. So that if we reduce in Lucky Me!, people would accept it or their taste buds would already be used to it.)

Soesanto said that salt intake from instant noodles is also quite small, as latest reports indicate that Filipinos have a per capita consumption of 40 packs per year. This compares with the 1,095 meals in a year based on three meals per day.

“‘Yung effect ng salt sa instant noodle, nandoon pero hindi kasing laki ng hina-hype. Hindi ganon ka-negative (The effect of salt on instant noodles is there, but it is not as big as the hype. It is not that negative),” he said.

Monde Nissin counts as subsidiaries Monde Nissin Singapore Pte. Ltd. (MNSPL), Monde M.Y. San Corp., and Monde Nissin International Investments Ltd.

MNSPL wholly owns Monde Nissin (UK) Limited, which fully controls Marlow Foods Limited that manufactures the meat alternative products, and also fully owns Monde Nissin New Zealand Ltd., and 56.43% of Monde Nissin Thailand Co. Ltd.