Evaluating the Energy and Core Nutrients of Condiments in China

Condiments are a significant source of sodium in the diets of Chinese residents. This study aimed to analyze the nutrient content of China's major condiments and to provide support for setting the reference intake for condiments in order to take measures on salt reduction in China. Nutrition data for condiments were collected from the Database on Nutrition Labelling of Prepackaged Foods China in 2017-2022, and by online access to food composition databases from France, the UK, Belgium, and Japan. The analyses include 1510 condiments in China and 1565 related condiments in four countries, of which the descriptive indicators were examined such as median, IQR, and range. Cross-comparisons were made in terms of the difference between the content levels in five countries and the "WHO global sodium benchmarks". The results show that among the 15 types of condiments in China, sesame/peanut butter-based products have a relatively high content of energy, fat, and protein, namely, 2580 kJ/100 g, 50 g/100 g, and 22.2 g/100 g, respectively. In addition to salt, chicken extract/chicken powder, bouillon cubes, and soy sauce are also high in sodium. Furthermore, there were significant differences in the contents of energy and core nutrients across different products when benchmarking with similar condiments in the five countries (p < 0.001). The sodium content and fat content of some condiments are excessively high. Therefore, enhancing residents' consumption awareness and reducing the amount of condiments is of great significance for reducing China's per capita salt intake and promoting good health.