Sodium Nitrate
Also known as: E251
Sodium nitrate is converted in food and the body to nitrite, which can react with amines to form nitrosamines, several of which are carcinogenic. IARC classifies processed meat (cured with nitrate/nitrite) as Group 1 carcinogenic to humans.
What it is
Sodium nitrate (NaNO3, E251), a curing salt used to preserve meats and stabilize color.
Preservative and color fixative in cured meats; bacteria reduce it to nitrite which inhibits Clostridium botulinum.
Why it's flagged
- nitrosamine formation
- IARC Group 1 carcinogen classification for processed meat
- linked to colorectal cancer risk
What regulators actually say
"Sodium nitrate may be safely used as a preservative and color fixative... so that the level of sodium nitrate does not exceed 500 parts per million and the level of sodium nitrite does not exceed 200 parts per million in the finished product."
"The IARC Working Group classified consumption of processed meat as carcinogenic to humans (Group 1)."
Regulatory status
United States — FDA
Permitted curing agent under 21 CFR 172.170 with strict residual limits (≤500 ppm sodium nitrate; ≤200 ppm sodium nitrite).
European Union — EFSA
Authorized under Regulation (EC) No 1333/2008 with strict maximum levels; EFSA 2017 confirmed ADI of 3.7 mg sodium nitrate/kg bw/day.
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