"Soup is good food."
That's what Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) seems eager to convey with its latest product initiative. No doubt the company will take a health-related message directly to consumers when its recipe updates hit stores in August, and the effects could be quite positive.
The world's largest soup maker announced on Wednesday that it is undertaking "Major Sodium Reduction Plans" in its soup lines. True, low-sodium soups are nothing new. Campbell itself has been gradually cutting the salt in its soups over the years as the potential health pitfalls of high sodium intake became widely publicized. However, one of the problems with cutting the sodium is that it also tends to cut down on flavor.
Now, Campbell believes it has a better option. The company will use an all-natural, low-sodium sea salt that has 40% less sodium than conventional salt. The sea salt will be used in 30 new and reformulated soups to lower sodium content by at least 25%.
The plan may seem like a pretty small step, but let's get back to that line, "Soup is good food." According to the Associated Press, Campbell hasn't used that promotion since 1989, when the government complained that those ads were misleading due to Campbell soups' high sodium levels. Even after reducing sodium in the 1990s, today the firm's soup, on average, still contains almost 37% of the daily amount of sodium an adult should eat in a day. If the firm uses the sea salt in all its lines, the firm can get the sodium content down to a healthier average of 28% of the daily allowance.
Most importantly, the new lower-sodium soups will definitely give Campbell something to crow about to consumers. Just as General Mills (NYSE:GIS) slapped "Whole Grain" labels on many of its cereal boxes, Campbell can point to its soups as "lower in sodium." It's a simple message that stands a good chance of resonating with time-crunched consumers on the prowl for healthy options. If Campbell plays its cards right, its soup could become a hot commodity.
For more on Campbell:
Fool contributor Brian Gorman is a freelance writer in Chicago. He does not own shares of any companies mentioned in this article.
