The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Oct. 9 issued a final rule allowing salt substitutes in foods with federal standards of identity, the recipes-in-regulation that spell out what products such as bread, cheddar cheese or mayonnaise must contain. Until now, FDA says, 139 standards allowed or required salt but did not allow substitutes, which left makers of those foods few ways to cut sodium and keep the standardized name. The rule went on public inspection at the Federal Register on Oct. 9 and is scheduled to publish Oct. 13. It takes effect 60 days after publication (Docket FDA-2022-N-2226).
Rather than listing approved ingredients, the rule adds a general definition to 21 CFR part 130. A salt substitute is any safe and suitable ingredient, or combination, that replaces some or all of the added sodium chloride, lowers sodium and performs salt’s functions in the food, without changing the food’s basic nature or essential characteristics. FDA amended 80 standards directly, and standards that cross-reference them pick up the same flexibility. Covered categories include dairy (sour cream, eggnog and about 40 cheese standards, among them cheddar, Monterey jack, mozzarella and pasteurized process cheese), bread, rolls and buns, self-rising flour, self-rising white corn meal, macaroni and noodle products, canned vegetables and fish, catsup, mayonnaise and salad dressing. FDA says the rule carries no regulatory costs because using it is voluntary. The agency also noted that a substitute must match salt’s actual role in the food. In self-rising flour, for example, salt is not a preservative, so an ingredient that only prevents spoilage would not qualify.
The rule creates no new labeling requirements, but existing ones still apply. A substitute must appear in the ingredient list under its common or usual name, and FDA specifically declined to let “salt substitute” serve as a catch-all name. Potassium chloride, for example, must be declared as “potassium chloride” or “potassium salt,” and a product with at least 2% of the Daily Value for potassium per serving must list potassium on the Nutrition Facts panel. Allergen labeling applies if a substitute contains a major allergen, and “low sodium” or similar claims must still meet FDA’s claim thresholds.
For tortilla makers, the direct effect is limited. Corn and flour tortillas, tortilla chips and corn masa flour have no FDA standard of identity. Part 136 covers only breads, rolls and buns, and the part 137 flour and corn-meal standards do not include tortillas or masa. That means tortilla makers could already use salt substitutes, subject to normal ingredient and labeling rules. The rule matters around them: standardized cheeses, sour cream and condiments used in kits and prepared foods, self-rising mixes, and the bread category that wraps compete with. It also signals FDA’s continued push on sodium. The agency tied the rule to its Voluntary Sodium Reduction Goals and says a Phase I progress report is due later this year. Plants and co-packers weighing a swap should test function, not just flavor, because salt also affects dough handling, fermentation and shelf life. The FDA announcement is linked below; the full rule text is FR Doc. 2026-20848 at federalregister.gov.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration
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