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The George Institute For Global Health (TGI)

Developing and testing low-salt fish sauce in Vietnam

Status: Ongoing

The George Institute for Global Health (TGI) targets three key pillars: consumer and communities, markets, and governments to create healthier societies. Their main areas of focus include: population salt reduction, noncommunicable disease prevention, cardiovascular disease prevention, and the inclusion of unhealthy diets as a preventable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.

With support from the LINKS grant, TGI plans to assess the feasibility and cost effectiveness of introducing lower-sodium foods into the Vietnamese market by developing and testing a low-sodium fish sauce. Findings from this innovative project will have implications for low-sodium condiments in the Western Pacific Region.

“Our previous work has demonstrated the possibility of reducing blood pressure by replacing 60% of sodium with potassium in regular salt and Bot Canh (common seasoning). The LINKS proposal extends this to developing and testing a reduced-sodium version of fish sauce. Together these three products constitute around 70% of the total sodium consumed in some parts of Vietnam. The LINKS grant is vital in terms of supporting the transition from research to practical, real-world implementation of salt reduction interventions.”

- Dr. Jacqui Webster, Director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre on Population Salt Reduction at the George Institute for Global Health.

Read the full press release