Three quarters of shop-bought bread is as salty per slice as packet of crisps, according to research

Three quarters of pre-packaged loaves of supermarket bread contain as much salt or more per slice than a packet of ready salted crisps, a survey has found.

Action on Salt looked at 242 store-bought loaves of sliced bread from 28 companies that were sold at 10 of the UK's largest supermarkets, and found three in four had equivalent amounts or more salt than the 0.34g found in a bag of crisps.

The saltiest was a Hovis White loaf with Starter Dough, which contained 1.48g of salt per 100g of bread. This was almost three times the amount of the least saltiest loaf (Waitrose Rye and Wheat Dark Sourdough) with 0.51g.

Too much salt can increase the risk of high blood pressure, which affects nearly a third of adults in England.

Someone eating a couple of slices of Hovis Soft White Extra Thick bread, for example, would be consuming a fifth of their maximum recommended daily salt intake.

Action on Salt now wants the government to set compulsory salt reduction targets.

Responding to the survey, Hovis said: "Over the last 20 years, Hovis has been actively reducing the levels of salt in its products, with the data provided by Action on Salt confirming this notable reduction over time.

"The vast majority of our range is fully compliant with current salt targets."

The brand added that "Cobs" were the loaves that Action on Salt highlighted as exceeding the voluntary salt targets, which are their "artisanal-inspired range" for "special occasions".

Read more: Adding salt to food could reduce life expectancy by more than two years

Although most loaves fell below the government's 2024 maximum salt target, the charity pointed to large variations suggesting that the targets were "far too lenient".

Reduced salt loaves included Vogel's Original Mixed Grain, Vogel's Soya & Linseed and Schneider Brot Organic Sunflower Seed Bread.

Graham MacGregor, Action on Salt chairman, said: "Reducing salt is the most cost-effective measure to lower blood pressure and reduce the number of people dying and suffering from strokes and heart disease.

"It's therefore a disgrace that food companies continue to fill our food with so much unnecessary salt, as shown here in bread. For too long the food industry have been in charge of public health, at our expense; it's time for the government to stop letting people die needlessly."

Sainsbury's said: "100% of our sliced bread products meet the 2024 Public Health England maximum salt target and we regularly review ranges in line with government guidance."