Sodium Reduction Practice and Importance-Performance Analysis of Sodium Reduction Methods in School Foodservice in Daegu

Importance-performance analysis of sodium reduction practices by school nutrition teachers and dietitians in the Republic of Korea

“…Among the measures for sodium reduction in school meal service in this study, using a salt meter during food preparation revealed the highest importance and performance scores. According to previous studies [ 19 28 ], most schools used a salt meter, which is consistent with the current results. As the purpose of the salt meter is to check the final salt content in cooked foods, accurately planning the amount of salt or seasoning in standard recipes using scientific calculation and accurately measuring them are of primary importance to reduce sodium intake.…”

“…The performance scores were also generally lower among middle and high schools than among kindergartens and elementary schools. Previous studies have also reported that sodium reduction practices by nutrition teachers and dietitians decreased with an increase in the school level [ 19 41 ], which is consistent with the current results. It is probably because the number of schools that serve 2 or 3 meals per day rises as the school level increases, which contribute to the workload.…”

“…However, the importance of salt planning through standard recipes, which is the starting point for systematic salt content management, was perceived at a low level. Kim et al [ 19 ] reported that the importance scores of planning meals considering sodium content and planning meals using natural ingredients instead of processed products were below average, which is consistent with the current results. These results indicate that education on sodium reduction practices for nutrition teachers and dietitians should include specific methods for menu planning.…”

“…To reduce sodium, the practices of seasoning soup or stew at the end of cooking or blanching processed meat products such as ham to remove excessive sodium have been implemented [ 17 ]. Nearly two-thirds (62.7%) of school nutrition teachers and dietitians in Gyeonggi-do used a salt meter to check the sodium content of soups and stews [ 18 ], and 77.4% of schools in the Daegu area served low-sodium meals [ 19 ]. Although nutrition teachers and dietitians perceived the importance of reducing the sodium content in school meals [ 20 21 ], the actual on-site practice of sodium reduction was, nonetheless, not satisfactory.…”

“…Numerous studies have been conducted on the practice of sodium reduction in school meal service at the local and regional levels [ 17 18 19 ]; however, nationwide research on the status of sodium reduction in school meal service is still lacking. The literature [ 17 18 ] has focused on ways to reduce sodium primarily in the cooking process.…”