Unilever to Crowd: Help Us Further Reduce Sodium in Our Products

June 28, 2012 By IdeaConnection

Many food companies continue to work with their suppliers to reduce the amount of salt in their products. Sodium is a major cause of high blood pressure which in turn can lead to heart problems, and the average person’s salt intake in some countries is way off the scales making it a major public health concern.

Unilever has already reduced salt levels by 25% in some of its products and wants to cut them by a further 15-20% without compromising taste. So on the Challenges and Wants section of its open innovation portal the multinational consumer goods company is inviting ideas to help it reduce the amount of sodium in food.

In the posting Unilever states: “We want open innovation to help us find alternatives to conventional salt. That might mean ingredients that provide taste without sodium – but it could also mean technology that helps us understand ways that consumers can experience satisfying taste while enjoying food with reduced salt levels.”

It adds that it would welcome partners with new ideas or technologies for some of the areas it is already exploring.  These include:

  • salt alternatives – including lower-sodium salts, alternative flavours, and sodium substitutes
  • technologies that address sensory and taste perception – by addressing salt receptors on the tongue, for example

The less salt challenge is one of a number of challenges on the company’s open innovation portal; other problems it wants help with include creating lighter and more sustainable packaging, discovering new technologies for sustainable washing and new toothpaste flavours and sensations.  They represent a significant increase in Unilever’s willingness to engage external partners for help with its R&D challenges.

To find out more about what Unilever is after click here.

 


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