Nutritional composition of ready-to-eat first course meals and soups on the Italian market: Focus on sodium content and comparison with WHO sodium benchmarks

Martina Moretton; D Angelino; N Pellegrini; D Martini

doi:10.1016/j.jfca.2026.109505

Nutritional composition of ready-to-eat first course meals and soups on the Italian market: Focus on sodium content and comparison with WHO sodium benchmarks

Martina Moretton, D Angelino, N Pellegrini D Martini

Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, Vol.159, pp.1-9

159

2026

: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfca.2026.109505

https://hdl.handle.net/10863/54271

Salt

Sodium reduction

Reformulation

Nutritional quality

Food Labeling

This study aimed to evaluate the sodium content of packaged first course meals and soups sold in Italy and to compare it with the World Health Organization (WHO) sodium benchmarks to identify priorities for reformulation. Information on 737 products sold by 12 major Italian retailers was retrieved. Items were classified by preservation method, i.e., refrigerated, frozen, canned, and dried. Energy, macronutrients, salt and fiber contents were collected from labels, and sodium content was compared to the relative WHO sodium benchmark. Median sodium content was 340 mg/100 g for first course meals and 284 mg/100 g for soups, with more than 90% of first course meals and 73% of soups exceeding the WHO sodium benchmark (230 mg/100 g). Among first course meals, sodium content did not differ significantly among the preservation methods included in the statistical analysis. Within the soup category, frozen products had significantly higher median energy, carbohydrate and protein contents, but significantly lower sodium content than refrigerated and canned products. Sodium content did not differ between branded and private-label items in both categories. This result suggests the need to reformulate many first course meals and soups currently on the market and the adoption of preservation methods minimizing sodium use.

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url

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0889157526006484?via%3Dihub&__cf_chl_tk=YiuunsCG8SCqPQtbDfdbVnh6jJJaaZII4zvUokjmO7I-1791298060-1.0.1.1-GA1F7N0qUZl.uZtX.SVmOaOesY2PVufw4UhUKP5P0WE

url

https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jfca.2026.109505

: Nutritional composition of ready-to-eat first course meals and soups on the Italian market: Focus on sodium content and comparison with WHO sodium benchmarks
: Martina Moretton - University of Udine
D Angelino - University of Teramo
N Pellegrini - University of Udine
D Martini - University of Milan
: Journal of Food Composition and Analysis, Vol.159, pp.1-9
: 0889-1575
: 1096-0481
: 159
: ACADEMIC PRESS INC ELSEVIER SCIENCE
: 9
: (UNIBZ)101956586
991007447080701241
: WOS:001874290000001
: 2-s2.0-105050320102
: 0889-1575/© 2026 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/4.0/)
: Faculty of Agricultural, Environmental and Food Sciences
: English
: Journal article
: Moretton M, Angelino D, Pellegrini N, Martini D