Exclusive interview with new Business Unit Director of Salt of the Earth, David Hart

Salt of the Earth, Ltd., has appointed David Hart as Business Unit Director. He will report to the CEO and be responsible for global business of Mediterranean Umami, an all-natural sodium reduction solution.

We asked David in an exclusive interview how he feels about the new role, how the sodium reduction plan will come into effect and his predictions for the future…

With salt content a hot topic in terms of health concerns, who do you believe is most responsible for its reduction, governments and regulators or the private sector?

We are seeing a strong demand coming from both of those directions: increased regulatory restrictions on sodium content, and consumers who want healthier and all-natural food. In locations like the UK and Israel, where there is or will be mandatory front-of-package consumer labelling, there is urgency for food companies to comply with the regulations. The clean-label trend for natural food, with ingredients that are easily understandable, is one of the key market-drivers of the industry.

Could you grant us an insight into some of the latest developments and innovations in sodium reduction?

We work very closely with each of our customers in a collaborative and iterative manner to reformulate their products to reduce sodium while maintaining their product characteristics. This R&D input is important and part of the support that we gladly provide to our customers. Using Mediterranean Umami we have seen sodium reduction up to 45% over multiple applications, like processed meats, bakery products and ready-to-eat (RTE) meals.

What will Salt of the Earth specifically be doing to reduce sodium reduction?

With food – the most important thing is the organoleptic profile – it has to taste good. The “Big-3” villains of the food industry—sugar, fat and salt—all taste good, and we are genetically predisposed to LOVE these flavors. When you try to create healthier food and limit the amount of sugar, fat and salt, this usually has a negative organoleptic impact. So, the main challenge is to have a significant reduction of salt/sodium while maintaining a positive organoleptic impact. Luckily for us, Mediterranean Umami is effective across multiple applications, allowing for up to 45% sodium reduction while maintaining a tasty flavour profile.

How do you feel having just landed the new role at Salt of the Earth Ltd.?

I’m really excited to work at Salt of the Earth and help the company to internationally leverage Mediterranean Umami, our natural sodium reduction solution. The company has made significant investments in the plant thanks to increasing demand in 2016. So far, I have been learning a lot and creating the road-map for the coming years. It is lots of fun to work in the test kitchen and see and taste the impact. Most important, my colleagues are friendly and highly professional and it is an honour to join the team.

Finally, imagine we are having this conversation in a year’s time, what will have changed?

We have ambitious goals for our Mediterranean Umami in 2017. We expect to continue our collaborations with leading food companies, hospitals and hotel chains and will place a significant focus on expanding our network of distributors around the world. In addition, we hope to have in place a strategic collaboration with a flavor house, as Mediterranean Umami provides a great synergy with a 100% natural and clean-label solution for sodium reduction and flavor enhancement.