In a strongly-worded letter to the health secretary, experts have called for warning labels on nitrite-cured meats and funding for alternatives, as evidence grows of their harm. By Nick Hughes.
Campaigners against the use of nitrites in ham and bacon production have ramped up pressure on the UK Government to take a tougher stance on the additives, which have been linked to an increased risk of cancer.
The Coalition Against Nitrites has written a strongly-worded letter to health secretary Wes Streeting calling for front-of-pack warning labels on nitrite-cured products that communicate their risk to consumers and parents.
Ministers have also been urged to commit to a long-term plan to phase out nitrite use in processed meats sold in the UK, backed by regulatory measures.
Earlier this month, the EU slashed the permitted level of nitrites that can be added during processed meat production following a review by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), however the UK has yet to follow suit.
As well as clamping down on their use, the coalition is calling for the government to help the meat industry transition to safer curing methods and nitrite alternatives through funding and research incentives.
Such alternatives already exist. The Northern Irish food manufacturer Finnebrogue has carved out a market niche with its Naked branded bacon, which uses fruit and vegetable extracts to maintain the same pink appearance that nitrites give to cured meat products. However, nitrite-free ham and bacon products are estimated to account for only around 10% of the UK market.
Retailers like Waitrose and M&S have led the market in offering nitrite-free alternatives, however penetration in foodservice remains low as revealed in a forthcoming Footprint Intelligence whitepaper. Leon is one of those to have bucked the trend. In 2020, the healthy fast food chain announced a partnership with Finnebrogue to sell nitrite-free bacon across its entire UK estate.
Confirmed carcinogens
The letter to Streeting is signed by scientists, cancer specialists and public health experts from across the world, including Chris Elliott, Professor of food safety and microbiology at the Institute of Global Food Security based at Queen’s University Belfast.
It is timed to mark the 10-year anniversary of the decision by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), part of the World Health Organisation, to classify processed meats as group one carcinogens, alongside substances like asbestos and cigarettes. Nitrites have been strongly linked to the formation of nitrosamines in the stomach – compounds associated with the development of colorectal (bowel) cancer.
There remains disagreement over the level of risk from consuming nitrites in products such as cured ham and bacon. The Food Standards Agency told Footprint earlier this year that nitrites have undergone a rigorous safety assessment prior to being authorised and pointed to their function in limiting the growth of bacteria that cause the life-threatening illness botulism.
The coalition, by contrast, has criticised what it sees as government inertia on the issue. In the letter to Streeting it registers its “profound disappointment” that ten years on from the IARC report “decisive protective measures have not been taken in the UK”. It continues: “Despite repeated confirmation from independent studies and sustained public concern, policy responses remain fragmented and inadequate”.
