SARASOTA, FLA. – Boar’s Head Provisions Co. Inc., has pledged its commitment to the New York City Department of Health’s National Salt Reduction Initiative (N.S.R.I.) by meeting the recommended 2012 target levels for sodium in deli cold cuts and cheeses.

"Reaching these target levels in advance of the proposed N.S.R.I. deadline reflects the commitment Boar's Head made to this Initiative early in January 2010, when New York City Mayor Bloomberg contacted our company about the N.S.R.I. targets for packaged and restaurant foods," said, Michael Martella, president of Boar's Head. "Boar's Head continuously maintains a leadership role in upholding the health and wellness status of its products."

A New York City-led partnership of 18 national health organizations and 29 city and state health authorities and their associations, the national Salt Reduction Initiative has set targets to guide a voluntary reduction of sodium levels with the objective of reducing the amount of salt in packaged and restaurant foods by 25% over five years – an achievement that would reduce the nation's salt intake by 20% and prevent many thousands of premature deaths, according to some sources.

Sodium levels in certain categories of Boar's Head products are dramatically lower than the N.S.R.I.-recommended levels for 2012 and have been for the past 25 years, the company relays. The taste of Boar’s Head products comes from the quality of the ingredients incorporated, making it not necessary to overuse salt as a flavor enhancer, the company said. Boar's Head uses only the finest ingredients: pure pork, turkey, chicken and beef, combined with real spices, without gluten, by-products, cereals, fillers, artificial flavors or colors. And since Boar's Head products are not meant to have a long shelf-life, less salt is used as a preservative.

Thirty Boar's Head deli meats also display the American Heart Association's distinctive red and white heart-check mark, which means the product has been screened and certified by the American Heart Association to meet its criteria for saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium.