Reduced Sodium Content Research Articles

Effects of the FDA's sodium reduction strategy in the U.S. market for chip products

Recent policy proposals have favored product reformulation to reduce excess sodium intake, a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published draft guidance with target values to encourage sodium reduction in processed food, spawning widespread discussion. Points of uncertainty are expected consumer responses to and market outcomes from sodium reductions affecting industry incentives and profits. The objective of this article is to simulate the effects of two reduction scenarios on sales, revenue, and total sodium intake, with a focus on industry-wide versus market-leader-only reformulation. Using a nested-logit demand framework, we derive product-level demand estimates and explicit “sodium elasticities” in the highly differentiated U.S. market for potato and tortilla chips and simulate two sodium reduction scenarios based on the FDA's current proposal. Key findings of our simulations are that a 10% reduction in sodium content for products exceeding the FDA's target sales-weighted mean would lead to an overall decrease in sodium intake of more than 7%. Adverse effects on reformulating manufacturer sales and revenues are ambiguous and vary by product category. Our results only partly support the “unhealthy = tasty intuition” hypothesis in the literature, indicating that the adverse effects of product reformulation on demand and industry benefits are not as guaranteed as often portrayed.

Dynamic aspects of salt reduction in tomato sauce by use of flavor enhancers and a bitter blocker

Several government agencies have established guidelines for the food industry to reduce sugar, fat, and salt in processed foods. The objective of this study was to determine the dynamic sensory profile of tomato sauce formulated with flavor enhancers, a bitter blocker and 50% sodium content reduction. The perception of consumers and a trained panel was explored. Consumers performed temporal dominance of sensations (TDS) and temporal acceptance (TA) while the trained panel performed time-intensity analysis (TI). TA indicated that flavor enhancers improve initial acceptance of a sample but that its masking effect weakens 30 s after ingestion. TI showed that despite promoting salty equivalence, substitute salts were not able to completely suppress the bitter taste characteristic of potassium chloride and the addition of lysine as a bitter blocker was the least effective strategy. In TDS the bitter taste was not dominant in any of the samples. However, the presence of unusual flavors/tastes to the consumers like metallic and umami seems to have interfered negatively in the evaluation of the flavors. Flavor enhancers have been widely used to reformulate processed foods in order to reduce sodium content, preserving sensory acceptance. This study provides information on the dynamic behavior of different salt substitutes.

Reduction of Sodium Intake from Papaya Salad with the Use of Sodium-Reduced Fermented Fish in Producing Traditional Seasoning Sauce.

Fermented fish is a common seasoning used in Northeastern Thailand and Laos to give food a salty taste. It is also used as a basic ingredient for preparing various seasoning sauces for many local dishes. This study examined the effect of sodium reduced fermented fish (SRFF) on reducing the sodium content in prepared traditional papaya salad. Three local producers provide fermented fresh water fish produced with either normal salt (FF) or 60% sodium-reduced salt (SRFF) that were then used by 3 local sauce producers to make papaya salad seasoning sauces. Three local street food vendors then were used these sauces as the main ingredients for preparing their papaya salads. Sodium contents of the FFs, SRFFs, and papaya salads were analyzed using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometer. Significant differences between sodium contents in sauces and papaya salads were evaluated using the t-test. Results showed that the SRFF contained 54% less sodium than the FF, while sodium in the SRFF sauces was approximately 42% less than from FF sauces. The papaya salads prepared from SRFF sauces contained on average 492±27 mg sodium per 100 g, which was 33% lower than those prepared from FF sauces. The use of SRFF could significantly reduce sodium content in traditional papaya salad by up to one-third, which could be beneficial in lowering the risk of hypertension among Norteastern Thai and Laotain people with minimal change in eating behaviors.

The impact of varying educational intervention on consumer understanding and attitude toward reducing sodium in food: Implications for marketing strategies

AbstractThe objective of this study was to compare the effectiveness of different forms of educational intervention (active learning, passive learning, and passive learning with an authoritative effect) and the way it is presented (soft or aggressive), to improve the knowledge of consumers regarding sodium and also sodium‐reduced product labels. The different educational interventions were used to provide information about sodium chloride, its importance in the body, and the label of the product with reduced sodium content. The research questionnaire was designed to determine the effect of different educational approaches. The educational interventions were equally efficient for the participant understanding of the questions about sodium and label. For questions, which refer to participant behavior and intention to buy, the educational intervention, passive learning was slightly (p ≤ .05) better than the others. The aggressive approach proved to be more efficient compared to the soft approach as the approach technique for educational intervention. The use of shocking information, such as the mortality rate, is an important tool to influence consumers to change their behavior.Practical ApplicationsThis research provides unprecedented information for the scientific community and the food industry. It expands the knowledge about the effectiveness of educational interventions (active learning, passive learning, and passive learning with authoritarian effect), which plays an effective role in improving consumer understanding of the damages caused by excessive sodium intake. The results of this can be study used to define media plans in order to achieve the consumption and consequently guide the consumer to consume less sodium.

Sodium Content in Commonly Consumed Foods and Its Contribution to the Daily Intake.

Salt consumption in many countries of the world exceeds the level recommended by WHO (5 g/day), which is associated with negative effects on health. Public health strategies to achieve the WHO’s objectives include salt content monitoring, improved nutritional labelling and product reformulation. This study aimed to determine the sodium content in street food (SF), fast foods (FF) and artisanal foods (AF) of the Northwest of Argentina, which is not regulated. Moisture, ash and sodium were determined according to the Official Methods of Analysis (AOAC) in 189 samples from each of the three categories. The average and range values were: SF 520 (R: 74-932); FF 599 (R: 371-1093) and AF 575 (R: 152-1373) mg Na/100 g. Thus, general sodium content is high, which means that the consumption of a serving from most of the studied foods leads to an individual exceeding the recommended daily intake values. This study contributes to the knowledge of sodium content in evaluated foods and its contribution to the population intake. This reinforces the importance of implementing new public policies and regulations, advising consumers to check food nutritional labels andselect foods lower in salt content, raising food manufacturers’ awarenessabout the importance of reducing sodium content in foods they produce and in public health.

The effects of sodium reduction on the gas phase of bread doughs using synchrotron X-ray microtomography.

Globally, the bakery industry has a target of reducing sodium content in bread products. However, removing salt results in changes in the quality of bread through effects on dough's gas phase during the breadmaking process. Using synchrotron X-ray microtomography, the objective of this study was to investigate how sodium reduction induced changes in the gas phase parameters (i.e., gas volume fraction, bubble size distribution (BSD) and its time evolution) of non-yeasted doughs made from a wide range of formulations (i.e., wheat cultivar and water content) prepared with different mixing times. As salt content was reduced, a lower gas volume was retained in the dough by the end of mixing. Less gas bubbles were also retained if doughs were prepared from a stronger wheat cultivar, higher water content, and/or mixed for a shorter time. Rates of change in the median (R0) and the width (ε) of the fitted lognormal radius dependence of bubble volume fraction [BVF(R)] indicated that reduced sodium content permitted disproportionation to proceed more rapidly. Higher water content or longer mixing time also resulted in faster disproportionation, indicating that water content and mixing time can be manipulated as a means of increasing bubble stability against disproportionation during low-sodium breadmaking. An examination of relative changes in dough's gas phase parameters arising from sodium reduction demonstrated that wheat cultivar, water content and mixing time all affected dough's tolerance to sodium reduction. Therefore, attainment of good bread crumb cell structure in low-sodium bread formulas is a function of salt's effects on dough rheology in addition to its effect on yeast activity, so that dough formulation and mixing conditions also need to be considered.

Substitution effects of NaCl by KCl and CaCl2 on Lipolysis of Salted Meat.

The objective of this study was to investigate the reduction and partial substitution effects of sodium chloride (NaCl) by potassium chloride (KCl) and calcium chloride (CaCl2) on lipolysis and lipid oxidation in salted meat aiming at reducing sodium content. To evaluate the effect of different salts on lipid oxidation thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARs) assay was performed along 180 days. Furthermore, ESI-MS/MS and GC analysis were conducted to detect and identify oxidized lipids, volatile compounds and free fatty acids profiles during the meat processing time. Lipid profiles from different salted meat demonstrated that CaCl2 salt have inducted more lipid oxidation when compared to the combination of NaCl and KCl salts, highlighting the implication of CaCl2 on increased lipolysis reactions. Moreover, the obtained results from both the analyses suggest that a combination of NaCl and KCl salts can be a good alternative for reducing the sodium content without compromising the quality of the salted meat.

Healthier chicken nuggets incorporated with chia (Salvia hispanica L.) flour and partial replacement of sodium chloride with calcium chloride

Chicken nuggets were reformulated by substituting the chicken skin with chia flour and partially substituting the NaCl with CaCl2. Four treatments were processed: Control – 1.5 g/100 g NaCl, without the addition of chia flour; CaCl2 – 75% substitution of NaCl by CaCl2; Chia – 50% replacement of chicken skin by chia flour; Chia+CaCl2 – 75% replacement of NaCl by CaCl2 and 50% substitution of chicken skin by chia flour. The protein content increased with the incorporation of chia flour. Treatments CaCl2 and Chia+CaCl2 presented reduced sodium content. Chicken nuggets containing chia flour showed an increase of α-linolenic acid and can be labelled as “high omega-3 content”. Formulations Chia and Chia+CaCl2 presented lower sensory acceptance among the four formulations, but about 50% of consumers still considered them acceptable. Thus, the Chia+CaCl2 formulation could be recommended to consumers seeking healthier meat products, due to its high omega-3 and reduced sodium content.

Efficacy of Monosodium Glutamate as a Flavour Potentiator in Salt Reduction: A Review

Sodium is an essential micro nutrient and an indispensable ingredient in most of the savoury foods. The salty taste is mainly contributed by sodium chloride through a proto-typical stimulus. The current sodium intake has been estimated to be exceeding normal recommendation at an alarming rate. This has given rise to health concerns since excessive sodium intake is associated with rise in blood pressure and eventually to cardiovascular diseases. The habitual salt intake among Asian population is around 10-12g/day against the WHO recommendation of 5-6g/day. Today food processing industries are facing challenges pertaining to sodium reduction, since it reduces the overall acceptability. In any food sodium can be reduced through a gradual lowering of salt level, however, this would require several months since it also decreases the overall palatability of foods. Another strategy that can be adopted to overcome this problem is to employ salt substitutes like monosodium glutamate (MSG). MSG has 30% less sodium in comparison to table salt and can help maintain palatability of foods. There are many studies supporting this observation. Our studies on the acceptability profile of salt reduced MSG incorporated fried preparations showed that approximately 25% of salt could be reduced in products without any significant effect on flavor profile. The results indicated that spice added product could be consumed with lower sodium levels and MSG had synergistic effect with spices. In salt reduced tomato soups, the control product with low salt was given lower scores as against MSG incorporated samples. It was also observed that increasing levels of MSG resulted in higher acceptance of products. Hence, it can be said that using MSG as a substitute would be a better option for maintaining adequate palatability in savoury foods with reduced sodium content.

Controlling sodium release using maltodextrin and octenyl‐succinic‐anhydride‐modified starch with two types of spray‐dryer nozzles

AbstractControlling sodium release is a promising way to achieve sodium reduction in foods. Microencapsulation can be effective technique to control sodium release. Maltodextrin and octenyl‐succinic‐anhydride (OSA)‐modified starch were evaluated as carriers to encapsulate NaCl using spray drying technique with two‐fluid and three‐fluid nozzles. The sodium release was measured using a conductivity probe. Increasing the concentration of maltodextrin and OSA‐modified starch decreased Rmax (maximum sodium release rate) and C20, C50, and C150 (sodium concentration at 20, 50, and 150 s, respectively). Generally, the samples spray dried with maltodextrin released sodium in faster rate than the samples with OSA‐modified starch, and samples with two‐fluid nozzle released faster than the ones with the three‐fluid nozzle. This study indicated that the release of sodium could be altered by the type and concentration of carriers and the types of spray‐dryer nozzles, which may provide strategies to reduce sodium content in foods, especially in salty snacks.Practical ApplicationsThis study aims to explore an innovative method to control sodium release and enhance saltiness perception during mastication of crispy salty snacks. It may provide a way to reduce sodium content without altering the flavor of foods. At the same time, the application of a three‐fluid nozzle as a novel spraying technique was examined for encapsulation of NaCl. The information obtained from this study can be used to modify the technique and to expand the application to various core–carrier combinations.

Application of arginine and histidine to improve the technological and sensory properties of low-fat and low-sodium bologna-type sausages produced with high levels of KCl

Low-fat bologna sausages were made with the replacement of 60% NaCl by KCl and with the addition of arginine and histidine alone or in combination. The technological and sensory properties were evaluated. The replacement of NaCl by KCl did not significantly affect the color parameters L*, a*, and b*. However, the emulsion stability, the texture profile, and the sensory quality were impaired by the salt substitution. The addition of arginine and histidine alone or in combination was effective to reduce the defects caused by the addition of KCl. The present study demonstrated that bologna sausages with reduced sodium content (≈40%) and acceptable technological and sensory properties can be produced using 1% NaCl, 1.5% KCl, 1% arginine and 0.2% histidine.

The influences of salt replacers on the antioxidative activity of pork

Lowering salt intake is of great importance for reducing blood pressure and cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this research was to study the effects of salt replacers on the antioxidative activity of meat. The treatments were formulated with minced pork muscles that were salted with 2.0% salt (control) or different salt mixtures with reduced sodium content (composition 1 – 1.0 % NaCl + 1.2% KCl (experiment 1), composition 2 – 1.0% NaCl + 0.6% KCl + 0.8% CaCl2 (experiment 2)). After 24 hours of curing, the total antioxidative activity of the antioxidant enzymes was measured. The use of potassium chloride instead of half the sodium chloride did not lead to a significant change in the total antioxidative activity, nor in the activities of glutathione peroxidase and catalase; however, it induced a decrease in the activity of superoxide dismutase (p<0.05). Addition of composition 2 led to a reduction in the total antioxidative activity by 17.7%, and inhibited the activity of superoxide dismutase by 23.8% (p<0.05). The obtained results of the negative effect of the compositions of sodium, potassium and calcium salts suggest the need to develop approaches that allow inhibition of the oxidative changes in meat products with reduced sodium content.

Sodium and potassium contents and ratios in pork stews produced with lower amounts of sodium chloride

The goal of this study was to investigate the influence on the sodium:potassium ratio of reducing sodium chloride content in pork stew by partial replacement with other two chloride salts. The trial consisted of five groups. In the control pork stew, only sodium chloride was added. In group 1, one third of the sodium chloride was replaced with potassium chloride; in group 2, one half of the sodium chloride was replaced with potassium chloride; in group 3, sodium chloride was reduced by half and one quarter of ammonium chloride (in relation to the control group) was added, and in group 4, sodium chloride was reduced by 62.5% and an equal amount of ammonium chloride was added. Moderate reduction of sodium content was achieved in group 1 (46.19%), while greater reductions of sodium content were achieved in groups 2, 3 and 4 (these had 64.69%, 61.54% and 67.91% less sodium than did the control, respectively). Potassium content increases were determined in groups 1 and 2 (potassium levels were 38.71% and 50.27% greater than in the control, respectively). The best sodium:potassium ratio was achieved in group 2 pork stew (0.47), in which half the sodium chloride was replaced with potassium chloride.

Sodium reduction in enrobed restructured chicken nuggets through replacement of NaCl with CaCl2.

The present study aimed to reformulate chicken nuggets with reduced sodium content, replacing the NaCl with CaCl2 and assessing the physicochemical and sensory properties of the obtained products. Four treatments of chicken nuggets were processed: Control formulation (1.5g NaCl/100g) and three treatments containing CaCl2 substituting 25, 50 and 75% of the NaCl, considering an ionic strength equivalent to 1.5% NaCl. The four different chicken nuggets were similar (p > 0.05) for the variables oil absorption, lipid, protein and moisture contents, water activity, cooking yield, pick-up and texture profile analysis. However, a decrease in ash content (2.21-1.75g/100g) was observed. The replacement of 75% NaCl could reduce 34% sodium in chicken nuggets with a concomitant increase in the calcium content (10-130mg/100g). For objective colour, the brightness (L*) increased from 74.43 to 78.28 as CaCl2 contents increased in the chicken nuggets, but the a* and b*parameters did not show differences (p > 0.05) among all treatments. Sensory acceptance (texture, flavour and overall quality attributes) did not differ between Control and the 75% sodium reduction treatments (all values around 7.5 in the 9-point hedonic scale), despite the decrease in the salty taste observed in the just about right scale test. Thus, the maximum tested replacement of 75% NaCl by CaCl2 produced healthier chicken nuggets, for having provided a reduction in sodium content and increase in calcium content, besides maintaining sensory quality and most of the technological characteristics.

Sodium reduction in butter using microparticulated salt

PurposeExcessive sodium intake is associated with several diseases. Accordingly, several measures, including microparticulate salt, have been adopted to reduce the salt contents of food products. However, no studies have reported the effectiveness of microparticulate salt in semisolid and liquid products. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to evaluate the application of microparticulate salt to reduce sodium contents in semisolid products.Design/methodology/approachThe optimal salt content to be added in butter was defined by the just-about-right-scale test. Butter samples were prepared using microparticulate salt to achieve 25, 50 and 75 per cent reductions in conventional salt concentrations. Multiple comparison tests were performed to evaluate sample taste.FindingsThe ideal concentration of conventional salt to be added to butter was 2.16 per cent. Discriminative tests showed that samples with 25 and 75 per cent salt reduction showed significant differences (p ⩽ 0.05) compared with butter prepared at the ideal salt content, whereas the sample with 50 per cent salt reduction had no significant difference (p > 0.05). Thus, microparticulate salt showed higher salting power than conventional salt. These results indicated the effectiveness of microparticulate salt in the preparation of semisolid products with sodium reduction.Research limitations/implicationsMore detailed studies about the reduced-sodium butter shelf life are necessary to verify the microparticulate salt application in the product preparation. Moreover, microparticulate salt application in semisolid and liquid products elaboration must be more investigated to better elucidate its practicability of reducing sodium content in these kinds of products. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further.Practical implicationsMicroparticulate salt has been successfully applied to reduce sodium in solid products, being added to the finished product surface. However, there are no studies that report its effectiveness in semisolid and liquid products, such as the butter, in which the salt is added during the product preparation. Thus, this research provides new scientific information to the food industry and research fields, to expand the knowledge of reduced-sodium products development using microparticulate salt with sensory quality.Originality/valueNo studies have evaluated the application of microparticulate salt for semisolid product preparation. Therefore, the findings will support the development of healthy products.

Study of the effectiveness of staphylococcins in biopreservation of Minas fresh (Frescal) cheese with a reduced sodium content

Reducing salt content in foods such as cheeses, while limiting the growth of spoilage microorganisms and foodborne pathogens, is a difficult challenge. One method that may prove useful is use of staphylococcins, which are bacteriocins produced by staphylococci.Therefore, staphylococcin antimicrobial activity against six strains of S. aureus isolated from cheese was tested aiming at their industrial application in biopreservation of Minas fresh (Frescal) cheese with reduced sodium content. Three staphylococcins were selected for these tests: Pep 5, aureocin A53 and lysostaphin. All three staphylococcins proved to be bacteriolytic against all six strains of S. aureus. The antimicrobial activity of the partially purified staphylococcins was subsequently investigated against strains S. aureus Q1 and QJ3 in cheese matrices (6.0 log CFU/g) with different NaCl contents (control, a 25% reduction, and a 50% reduction), kept under refrigeration at 4 °C, for 21 days. Both strains were shown to be of concern for food industry as they carry the SEA, SEB and SEH enterotoxin genes, and are resistant to β-lactam drugs and moderate biofilm formers when grown in TSB. When used singly, Pep5, aureocin A53 and lysostaphin reduced approximately 95%, 99% and 99.99% of the viable cell counts, respectively, irrespective of the sodium content of the cheese matrix. The combined action of aureocin A53 and Pep5 resulted in an additional and significant reduction (p < 0.05) of ~1.0 log CFU/g when compared with the reduction caused by the use of either one singly. The combined action of lysostaphin and aureocin A53 or lysostaphin and Pep5 resulted in a reduction similar to or slightly smaller (p > 0.05) than that observed when lysostaphin was employed singly. Lysostaphin also proved to reduce the number of the staphylococcal viable cells to a level (~ 2.0 log CFU/g) at which enterotoxin production should not reach a sufficient quantity to cause food poisoning. Therefore, lysostaphin may have a practical application in the food industry to control staphylococcal contamination of Minas fresh cheese with a sodium content reduced up to 50%, providing consumers with more safe options to reduce their intake of sodium.

Effect of replacing pork backfat with Echium oil on technological and sensory characteristics of bologna sausages with reduced sodium content

This research evaluated the effect of animal fat replacement by Echium oil in bologna sausages with low sodium content. Three formulations were prepared: Control (100% pork fat), T50 and T100 (50 and 100% pork fat replacement with Echium oil, respectively). The samples were evaluated through physicochemical (sodium content, emulsion stability, proximate composition, water activity, lipid profile, pH, instrumental colour, and instrumental texture), microstructural (scanning electronic microscopy), and sensory (acceptance and CATA) analysis. The replacement of 50% and 100% animal fat (T50 and T100, respectively) did not affect any bologna physicochemical characteristics (p > 0.05), but T100 showed lower (p < 0.05) sensory acceptance. In comparison to the other samples, the CATA results presented different sensory descriptors for T100, such as tasteless, aerated appearance, and fish odour. However, all the formulations can be considered “acceptable”, as all of them showed an acceptance score around 7. Both samples with Echium oil showed lipid profile improvement, a higher ω3 content, and a decreased ω6:ω3 ratio compared with the control. The replacement of fat with Echium oil was technologically feasible for obtaining nutritionally enriching bologna sausages with reduced sodium.

Impact of nutritional claims on consumer preferences for bread with varied fiber and salt content

High consumption of bread provides a lot of salt, but it can also provide a lot of fiber to the diet. The use of labels on bread could encourage consumers to choose bread with improved nutritional value, i.e., with reduced salt and increased fiber content. The aim of the study was to explore the impact of the different nutritional information on preferences regarding bread (wheat plain roll) with reduced sodium content and bread enriched with fiber. The survey was carried out among a group of 330 adult consumers in 2015 in the southern part of Poland. The conjoint analysis design included four product attributes – two nutritional claims (“Low salt content” and “Source of dietary fiber”), fiber content, and salt content. The mean part-worth utilities of individual product attributes and the relative importance of attributes within the sample were calculated using SAS procedures. Next, cluster analysis, based on the individual utilities, was undertaken to identify groups (clusters) of consumers with similar preferences. Salt content had higher relative importance for the participants in comparison with both claims, while the relative importance of dietary fiber content was the lowest. The relative importance of both nutritional claims was almost equal, namely 25.5% for the fiber claim and 25.4% for the salt claim. The results of cluster analysis showed strong heterogeneity in consumer reactions to the attributes of the tested product. To conclude, providing information about the salt and fiber content of bread is necessary to encourage a healthy choice, but the claims placed on bread packaging seem to be insufficient as they contribute to the avoidance of the product. Increasing consumer awareness of nutrition claims of foods is required.

Understanding consumer's perception and acceptance of bologna sausages with reduced sodium content and/or omega‐3 addition through conjoint analysis and focus group

AbstractThe objective was to evaluate consumer's perceptions of bologna with reduced sodium content and/or enriched with omega‐3. Two factors were selected, each one with two levels: sodium content (“more” or “less”) and omega‐3 addition (“with” or “without”). Four stimuli of bologna sausages were evaluated by 263 consumers in conjoint analysis (CA). The same stimuli were evaluated by focus group with two groups of eight participants in each one. CA showed that consumers attributed more relative importance to sodium content than omega‐3 addition. In fact, it was also observed in the focus group that consumers demonstrated lower knowledge about health benefits of omega‐3. Both techniques demonstrated that consumers approved and could consume the product with the claims: “less sodium and containing omega‐3.” Furthermore, the different consumer research techniques applied showed similar results regarding consumer's perception and acceptance about healthier meat products.Practical applicationsBologna sausage is an emulsified processed meat and has high acceptability among Brazilian people, but many consumers believe that it is not healthy. Understanding the perception of healthier bologna sausages is important information to industries that can drive production based on the consumer expectation.

Replacement of Fat by Natural Fibers in Chicken Burgers with Reduced Sodium Content

Introduction: Due to its practicality in preparation and to have nutrients that satisfy hunger quickly, hamburger has become a product consumed by all popular classes. However, due to the considerable contents of saturated fat and sodium, consuming too much of this type of food can be harmful to human health. Methods: Aiming at the development of a healthier meat product with reduced saturated fat, a chicken burger with green banana biomass flour and passion fruit peel flour was formulated using herbal salt (a blend of coarse sea salt and herbs) as a substitute for sodium chloride. The influence of these substitutions on the physical and physicochemical characteristics of the developed product was evaluated. The flours produced were evaluated according to the analysis of: granulometry, water content, water activity and color. Result and Conclusion: The hamburger formulations were analyzed for quality parameters: texture profile, color, water content, ash, pH, acidity, lipids, chlorides, cooking yield and percentage of shrinkage. The hamburger enriched with green banana biomass flour was characterized by the lower lipid content but presented higher values for firmness and chewability. The addition of passion fruit peel flour as a partial fat substitute provided higher yields, while the green banana biomass meal resulted in a smaller shrinkage to the burger after cooking. The green banana biomass flour hamburger presented as a viable alternative for the ingestion of processed meat with reduction of sodium and fat.