What is salt & sodium?
Salt (sodium chloride) is one of the oldest and most widely used food ingredients, appearing in processed foods in forms ranging from basic table salt to sea salt, kosher salt, and specialty salts. It is listed on ingredient labels of the majority of packaged foods and serves multiple functional purposes beyond simple flavor enhancement. The FDA estimates that over 70% of dietary sodium intake in the United States comes from processed and packaged foods rather than salt added during home cooking or at the table.
226,840 products in our database contain salt & sodium. 73,141 of them (32%) are Level 4, the most processed of our four levels.
Which foods contain salt & sodium?
Salt is found in bread, processed meats, canned soups and vegetables, cheese, snack foods, condiments, sauces, frozen meals, crackers, cereals, salad dressings, pickled foods, cured meats, and the majority of packaged and processed food products.
Santa Barbara, Mango Salsa with Peach, Medium
Shoprite, Scrunchy, Toasted Oats Sweetened Oat Cereal, Apple Cinnamon
Apple Cinnamon Sweetened Toasted Oat Cereal
The Original Caesar Dressing
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Chocolate Hazelnut
Glutino, Gluten Free Crackers, Cheddar
Family Recipe Italian Dressing
Margarita & Lime White Corn Tortilla Chips
Italian Reduced Fat Dressing
Granola Bark
House Italian Made with Peramesan Cheese
Deli Fresh Chipotle Seasoned Chicken Breast
Campbell's Sauces Pineapple Teriyaki
Peanut Butter Ice Cream with Peanut Butter Cups, Peanut Butter Cup
Crackers, Real Cheddar Cheese
Bisquick Gluten Free Pancake & Waffle Mix
El Mexicano, Sour Cream
Gin Gins, Ginger Caramel Candy
Stonehedge Farms, Old Fashioned Caramel Popcorn
Original Recipe Tapioca Pudding
Chipotle Pepper Marinade
Pizza Quick Snack Sauce
Hormel, Premium Chicken Breast in Water
Great Value, Chunk Chicken Breast with Rib Meat in Water
Cream Soup Powder
B&m, Baked Beans, Maple
Great Value, Cashews, Honey Roasted
Hammond's, Popcorn, Chocolate
Amazing Taste, Steak House Seasoning
Mammoth Pecans
Red Gold 28oz. Diced Tomatoes
Tuttorosso Green 28oz. Whole Peeled Plum Tomatoes in Juice
Tuttorosso Green 28oz. Diced Tomatoes in Juice
Crystal White Corn Syrup, Crystal White
Light Corn Syrup with Real Vanilla, Light, Vanilla
Light Corn Syrup, Light Corn
Light Corn Syrup, Real Vanilla
Lite Corn Syrup with Real Vanilla, Real Vanilla
Light Corn Syrup Made with Real Vanilla
Light Corn Syrup with Real Vanilla, Real Vanilla
Sesame Sticks & Cashews Trail Mix, Cashew & Sesame
Light Corn Syrup with Real Vanilla, Real Vanilla
Food Club
Light Corn Syrup
Clover Valley
Enriched Self-Rising Cake Flour with Baking Powder and Salt Added
Presto
Light Corn Syrup, Light
Clover Valley
Racconto, Coarse Sea Salt
Amorcito Corazon, Sea Salt
Redmond, Real Salt, Fine Salt
Old World Flavor, Coarse Kosher Salt
Field Day, Sea Salt
Field Day, Natural Fine Mediterranean Sea Salt
Mrs. Wages, Pickling & Canning Salt
Meijer, Gold, Mediterranean Sea Salt
Selina Naturally, Light Grey Celtic Sea Salt
Selina Naturally, Celtic Sea Salt, Light Gray Celtic
Badia, Sea Salt Coarse
Selina Naturally, Celtic Sea Salt, Fine Ground
Alessi, Kosher Sea Salt
Mediterranean Sea Salt
Grinder Coarse Pink Salt
Also known as
Salt & Sodium can appear in ingredient lists under several names. If you see any of the following, this is the ingredient family you are looking at:
Function
Salt serves as a flavor enhancer, preservative, texture modifier, and fermentation regulator in food manufacturing. It amplifies and balances flavors in savory and sweet products alike, inhibits microbial growth to extend shelf life, controls yeast fermentation rates in bread making, and affects protein and starch interactions that determine texture in processed meats, cheeses, and baked goods. Salt also influences water activity in foods, which directly impacts product safety and stability during storage.
Sources
Salt is obtained through three primary methods: solar evaporation of seawater or brine (producing sea salt), mining of underground rock salt deposits (halite), and solution mining where water is injected into underground salt deposits and the resulting brine is evaporated. Table salt is typically refined to remove trace minerals and may have iodine and anti-caking agents added. Specialty salts like Himalayan pink salt, Celtic sea salt, and fleur de sel retain varying levels of trace minerals from their source and undergo minimal processing.
Health considerations
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend limiting sodium intake to less than 2,300 mg per day for adults. The FDA has issued voluntary sodium reduction targets for commercially processed and prepared foods. Sodium content is required on the Nutrition Facts label, and the FDA regulates health claims related to sodium.
This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice.
Regulatory
Salt is classified as GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe) by the FDA. Sodium content must be declared on the Nutrition Facts label. The FDA has issued voluntary short-term and long-term sodium reduction targets for 163 categories of commercially processed, packaged, and prepared foods. Iodized salt must meet FDA standards for potassium iodide content. The EU requires sodium content labeling and regulates salt iodization programs by member state.