Salt in cheese: Health issues, reduction, replacement and release

Many chronic diseases are associated with excessive salt intake (NaCl) such as hypertension, strokes, osteoporosis, kidney stones and cardiovascular diseases (CVD). World Health Organisations highly recommended to food manufacturers to reduce the salt in their products. Therefore, reduction of salt in foods becomes an important issue. Cheeses contribute highly to the daily intake of salt. Reduction of salt in cheese has been investigated using different techniques. Simple salt reduction in cheeses without substitution with other salts has been applied. Most of studies reported several issues related to saltiness perception, cheese texture and safety. Salt (NaCl) replacement, second technique, with other salts (potassium chloride, magnesium chloride and calcium chloride) has been proposed as an alternative to simple techniques. Substitution of NaCl with other salts has proved its ability to maintain the safety and quality of cheeses; however, minor issue related to sensory properties needs further investigation. The mechanism of salt release in cheese is an important factor that needs further investigation in order to improve saltiness taste in low-salt cheeses. This chapter provides scientific and valuable information about: roles of salt in cheese, salt and health issues, salt reduction techniques and summarize the studies have been published, so far, in terms of salt release.