To provide scientific evidence for promoting salt reduction and establishing nutritionally healthy canteens.

Seven institutional and enterprise canteens in Chengdu’s chronic disease prevention zones were surveyed. Over four weeks, accounting and weighing methods were used to collect data on the usage of all condiments, weights of main/auxiliary ingredients in popular dishes, salt concentration in soups, per capita salt intake, dish-specific salt content and salt contribution rate, and condiment-derived salt contribution rates. The data was analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis H test to compare differences between groups.

Condiment usage and total salt content varied significantly across canteens. Median salt intake was 5.2（4.0, 5.5）g per diner per meal, with 87.8% contributed by table salt, fermented bean paste, soy sauce, chicken essence, and monosodium glutamate. Salt content and contribution rates of popular dishes showed significant variation（H=20.433，P=0.002；H=19.045，P=0.004）. Median dish-specific salt contribution rate was 28.7%（14.4%,43.9%）. Bean products and vegetable dishes had the highest salt content（H=11.905，P=0.018）; home-style and spicy dishes contained more salt（H=9.567，P=0.048）. In savory dishes, table salt contributed most to condiment-derived salt（H=21.305，P<0.001）; in home-style/spicy dishes, fermented bean paste/tempeh dominated（H=24.700，P<0.001）. Median soup salt concentration was 0.28%（0.12%,0.38%）, with fish/vegetable soups highest and poultry soups lowest（H=22.668，P<0.001）.

Chengdu institutional canteens exhibit high salt-containing condiment usage. Nudge-based interventions may effectively advance salt reduction and nutritionally healthy canteen development.