The coalition of global health officials has also accused Kellogg and Nestlé for feeding cereal eaters around the world with excessive amounts of sugar and salt.
A big whitewash?
In Mexico, a 100 g serving of Kellogg’s Honey Smacks contains 25% more sugar (57 g/100 g) than the same bowl of cereal sold in Spain (43 g/100 g), found a recent survey conducted by WASH.
But, it’s all to do with consumer preference and one country’s penchant for sweeter things than another, contended Alison Last, Kellogg’s corporate communications manager, UK and Ireland. This will obviously lead to variations in recipes around the world, she said.
Sweet achievements
She told BakeryAndSnacks that Kellogg’s has been committed to reducing the sugar and sodium levels in its cereals for more than a decade and is right on track to achieve its global sugar and sodium reduction targets by 2020.
“The majority of our cereals now have 10 g (about 2.5 teaspoons) or less of sugar per 30 g serving, and by 2020, 90% of our Kellogg’s cereals will have 10 g of sugar or less per 30 g serving,” she said.
“In the UK alone, we will have removed more than 2,000 tons of sugar in our cereals by the end of next year. In addition, in 2015, we exceeded our global goal of a 30% overall sodium reduction in ready-to-eat cereals five years ahead of schedule.
“By 2020, at least 85% of our cereals will have 150m g or less of sodium per 30 g serving,” Last added.
A spoonful of sugar…
A sampling of 19 products manufactured by Kelloggs and Nestlé sold in 29 countries were compared and results indicated that more than half (58%) contained high levels of sugar (over 22.5 g/100 g; almost six teaspoons of sugar) or 6.75 g in the standard 30 g serving.
Depending on the eater’s age, this may or may not be within Public Health England’s recommended daily intake of no more than 19 g for 4-6 year olds, 24 g for 7-10 year olds and 30g for adults.
The top 5 cereals with the highest sugar content
The top 5 cereals with the lowest sugar content
Adding salt to wounds
WASH also compared the levels of salt found in cereals and found that 98 out of 291 (34%) contained more salt than the UK’s 2017 target for breakfast cereals of 1 g salt per 100 g.
Again, the amount of salt in the cereal varied by country. For example, Kellogg’s Cornflakes sold in India contained 46% more salt (1.93 g/100 g) than the same brand sold in Brazil (1.04 g/100g).
The top 5 cereals brands with the highest salt content
The top 5 cereals with the lowest salt content
A call to standardize
The survey results have added impetus for critics to urge food manufacturers to increase efforts in reducing the salt and sugar content in their products.
Prof Graham MacGregor, chairman of WASH and professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at Queen Marty University of London has criticized Kellogg and Nestlé for the “’shocking’ levels of salt and sugar in their cereals”.
He has challenged the two companies to “demonstrate that they can act in their customers’ interest to reduce sugar and salt levels to help save lives.”
Saadia Noorani, registered public health nutritionist at WASH, said that should not be impossible as the survey found popular cereals can be manufactured with less salt and sugar.
However, Last said while Kellogg’s will continue educating its consumers about nutrition and a balanced diet, it is committed to offering choice through a diverse range of foods.