Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Food
Now Bloomberg's Coming for Your Salt!
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 11, 2010
Modified Jan 11, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published Jan 11, 2010
Modified Jan 11, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Another day, another Bloomberg health initiative: This time it's salt's turn in the mayor's crosshairs. Today the city is launching a broad new effort to reduce the amount of salt in packaged and restaurant food by 25 percent over the next five years. Unlike Bloomberg's controversial calorie count law, the plan is voluntary for food companies and involves no legislation. (It's hoped that companies will cut salt so gradually that consumers won't even notice.) Food Emporium and Subway have already pledged their allegiance to the anti-salt crusade, but naturally the Salt Institute (yes, there is such a thing) is fuming.
"There's a certain arrogance when the New York City Health Department is setting policy for the rest of the country," Salt Institute spokeswoman Lisa Roman tells the Post. "These are decisions that should be made personally." And Dr. Michael Alderman, a professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, thinks the initiative amounts to an uncontrolled experiment with the public’s health, telling the Times, "I’m always worried about unintended consequences." But Dr. Thomas Farley, the city health commissioner, says the bottom line is that "we all consume way too much salt, and most of the salt we consume is in the food when we buy it."
The city's National Salt Reduction Initiative is being conducted in partnership with other cities because major food companies can't alter their products for just the New York market. A&P, the supermarket chain that operates in NYC as Food Emporium, is expected to cut the salt in hundreds of store brand products it sells under labels like America’s Choice and Smart Price. And Subway will commit to the city’s salt guidelines at its nearly 23,000 stores across the country. Subway's six-inch spicy Italian sub currently has a salt content that is far above the city’s goals.
According to the Health Department, only 11% of the sodium in Americans’ diets comes from their own saltshakers; nearly 80% is added to foods before they are sold. The sodium in salt is a major contributor to high blood pressure, which in turn causes heart attack and stroke.
Tagged
bloomberg
health dept
nyc
reduction
SALT
sodium
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE food
10 dishes that demonstrate the delicious diversity of curry in New York City
The global dish is shapeshifting and ubiquitous.
By
Robert Sietsema
Published Sep 12, 2026
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
Food
Frozen yogurt is back in New York City. So are the super long lines.
Is it worth the high price and ridiculous wait? Gothamist needed to find out.
By
Sonia Rao
5 NYC banana puddings as good as Magnolia's
By
Hannah Frishberg
Where to eat in Greenpoint, Brooklyn right now, from Polish to Sichuan to Iberian
By
Robert Sietsema
Can a congressional candidate's dumpling diplomacy win over Queens’ immigrant communities?
By
Caroline Shin
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .