Green House and Toy Medical Announce Demonstration Results of Food Environment Creation Using Proprietary "Salt Offset Technology" at Kanagawa Prefecture's "BAK"

Green House Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director and President: Chiaki Tanuma; hereinafter "Green House") and Toy Medical Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Kumamoto-shi, Kumamoto Prefecture; Representative Director and President: Hidenori Takeshita; hereinafter "Toy Medical") reported the results of their co-creation project under the "Business Accelerator Kanagawa (BAK)" open innovation program led by Kanagawa Prefecture, at a results presentation held on March 18, 2026.

The two companies reported on their co-creation project.

The project fused Toy Medical's "Salt Offset Technology," which utilizes alginic acid from seaweed components, with Green House's advanced cooking know-how. They announced demonstration results aimed at creating a new food environment that transforms daily meals into "health infrastructure" without sacrificing taste.

■ Background: Serious Excess Salt Intake and the Limits of "Enduring Salt Reduction"

Currently, the average salt intake in Japan is 10.9g for men and 9.3g for women, significantly exceeding the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's target of 7g. High salt intake is considered a major factor causing high blood pressure and other conditions.

However, conventional countermeasures have mainly involved "salt reduction by thinning the taste," which has led to low satisfaction among eaters and difficulty in sustained adoption. To address this issue, both companies conducted demonstration experiments using "Salt Offset Technology," which converts sodium (salt) into a form that is difficult for the body to absorb due to alginic acid, in various food settings, and verified its acceptance and practicality for social implementation.

■ Demonstration Results: Two Developed Solutions

① Salt Offset Menu

Menus were developed where alginic acid was blended into staple foods, side dishes, desserts, etc., to "offset" the salt content without changing the amount of salt. Satisfaction among Green House employees who participated in tasting sessions and residents of elderly care facilities managed by Green House was verified, along with practicality in cooking environments.

Overall Menu Satisfaction: An 86% "satisfied/somewhat satisfied" response was obtained from a survey conducted among employees involved in social implementation, such as sales divisions with touchpoints in Green House's employee cafeterias and elderly care facilities, registered dietitians responsible for menu creation, departments promoting health management, and restaurant/hotel businesses, as well as project stakeholders.

Continuation Intent: An extremely high level of acceptance was shown, with 75% of elderly care facility residents expressing a desire for continuous provision in the future.

Cooking Practicality of Alginic Acid: Through the demonstration, challenges such as alginic acid being "difficult to dissolve in water" and "having compatibility issues with menus" were overcome by incorporating Green House's cooking techniques and nutritional knowledge. The burden on cooking staff was reduced to an "almost non-existent" level, demonstrating its potential as a menu item that can be offered daily.

② Salt Offset Jelly

A stick jelly for personal care during dining out, etc., was developed, and a 14-day continuous intake study (※1) was conducted with 153 subjects.

Verification of Effectiveness: Compared to before intake, urinary sodium excretion significantly decreased on day 7 and tended to remain low on day 14. This tendency was particularly strong in groups with higher initial salt intake.

Perception of Swelling Improvement: The subjective feeling of swelling in the legs showed an improving trend on both day 7 and day 14 compared to before intake.

Marketability as a Product: Survey results showed that 78% expressed "purchase intent (including conditional)" and 64% expressed "continuation intent," indicating high potential as a new option for salt care.

※1 Study Name: Verification of Urinary Sodium Levels and Subjective Changes with Continuous Intake of Salt Offset Jelly, Study ID: UMIN000060362 (Registered with the University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trial Registry System)

■ Comments from Both Companies

Green House Group

Green Food Management Systems Co., Ltd.
GreenX Plus Promotion Office (Registered Dietitian) Manager Hiromi Matsuo

Since its establishment, the Green House Group has sincerely faced various food settings to support people's health through food. Meals that consider salt content have played an important role as a foundation for health promotion. However, as lifestyles and preferences diversify, we feel that in addition to traditional approaches to salt reduction, options that can be continued more effortlessly are also necessary. Through this co-creation, we were able to confirm the potential for new options by combining Toy Medical's Salt Offset Technology with our cooking and nutritional knowledge. Moving forward, we will continue to work on increasing healthy food options tailored to each individual, while valuing the joy and satisfaction of eating.

Toy Medical Co., Ltd.

Marketing Division Manager (Registered Dietitian) Konatsu Matsushita

Our company aims to realize a world where "deliciousness" and "health" are not sacrificed.