Cargill Adds to Sodium Reduction Portfolio With FlakeSelect™ at IFT 2011

NEW ORLEANS, June 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Today at the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Food Expo, Cargill introduced FlakeSelect™, a portfolio of products that enables food manufacturers to reduce sodium in snacks, baked goods and processed foods, or reformulate with sea salt, while maintaining the great salt taste consumers expect.

FlakeSelect™ uses Cargill's patent-pending compacting technology to combine salt and other ingredients. The compacting process applies pressure to the ingredients to create an agglomerated, or clustered, thin flake with properties including uniform consistency, low bulk density, high solubility, and a large surface area. The result is a great-tasting flake that, when compared to dry blended or granulated products, has superior adherence for topical applications. These applications include salty snacks, bakery products and seasoning blends for meat products.

"Four out of 10 consumers check product labels for low sodium claims*, and most of the sodium consumed in the American diet comes from processed and restaurant foods," said John Franklin, marketing manager, Cargill. "FlakeSelect™ allows food processors and food service operators to reduce the amount of sodium in their products while maintaining the taste and appearance consumers demand."

With four formulations and four cut sizes, FlakeSelect™ can be customized based on a customer's needs. "In most cases, we can work with a customer to replicate the taste and look of their current product, but reduce the sodium – with comparable consumer liking," Franklin said.

"Customers have told us that they're interested in improving flavor, and that they need various flake 'cuts,' including fine and flour cuts," said Franklin. "They're also looking for salts that won't stratify (form layers) on topical applications. With FlakeSelect™, Cargill can help customers address those types of needs – and many others – to reformulate existing products or develop new ones."

FlakeSelect is available in four varieties, which offer unique flake product functionality:

• FlakeSelect™ KCl (potassium chloride)
• FlakeSelect™ KCl/Salt
• FlakeSelect™ KCl/Sea Salt
• FlakeSelect™ Sea Salt

Each of the varieties is available in the following cuts:  Extra Coarse, Coarse, Fine Flake and Flour.

For more information, visit Cargill's booth (#6039) at IFT, June 11-14, 2011, at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center. Visitors to the booth can taste a sausage pizza prototype featuring the FlakeSelect™ sodium reduction system. Additional information also is available at Cargill.com/Salt.

Cargill is an international producer and marketer of food, agricultural, financial and industrial products and services. Founded in 1865, the privately held company employs 131,000 people in 66 countries. Cargill helps customers succeed through collaboration and innovation, and is committed to applying its global knowledge and experience to help meet economic, environmental and social challenges wherever it does business. For more information, visit www.cargill.com.

*2009 HealthFocus Trend Report

SOURCE Cargill