Processed meat

Various types of processed meat for sale at a grocery store

Processed meat is considered to be any meat that has been modified in order to either improve its taste or to extend its shelf life. Methods of meat processing include salting, curing, fermentation, smoking, boiling, frying, and/or the addition of chemical preservatives.[1] Processed meat is usually composed of pork or beef or, less frequently, poultry. It can also contain offal or meat by-products such as blood. Processed meat products include bacon, ham, sausages, salami, corned beef, jerky, hot dogs, lunch meat, canned meat, chicken nuggets,[2] and meat-based sauces. Meat processing includes all the processes that change fresh meat with the exception of simple mechanical processes such as cutting, grinding or mixing.[3]

Meat processing began as soon as people realized that cooking and salting prolongs the life of fresh meat. It is not known when this took place; however, the process of salting and sun-drying was recorded in Ancient Egypt, while using ice and snow is credited to early Romans, and canning was developed by Nicolas Appert who in 1810 received a prize for his invention from the French government.[3] Medical health organizations advise people to limit processed meat consumption as it increases risk of colorectal cancer.[4][5][6][7]

  1. ^ Monica Reinagel (2 Aug 2016). "What's the Definition of Processed Meat?". Scientific American. Retrieved 27 Jan 2022.
  2. ^ "The Meat You Eat – What's Good for You?". WebMD. Retrieved 2022-05-19.
  3. ^ a b Pearson, A. M.; Tauber, F. W. (2012-12-06). Processed Meats. Springer Science & Business Media. ISBN 9789401096928.Introduction [1]
  4. ^ Rock, Cheryl L.; Thomson, Cynthia; Gansler, Ted; Gapstur, Susan M.; McCullough, Marjorie L.; Patel, Alpa V.; Andrews, Kimberly S.; Bandera, Elisa V.; Spees, Colleen K.; Robien, Kimberly; Hartman, Sheri; Sullivan, Kristen; Grant, Barbara L.; Hamilton, Kathryn K.; Kushi, Lawrence H.; Caan, Bette J.; Kibbe, Debra; Black, Jessica Donze; Wiedt, Tracy L.; McMahon, Catherine; Sloan, Kirsten; Doyle, Colleen (2020). "American Cancer Society guideline for diet and physical activity for cancer prevention". CA. 70 (4): 245–271. doi:10.3322/caac.21591. PMID 32515498. S2CID 219550658.
  5. ^ "Diet, nutrition, physical activity and stomach cancer" (PDF). American Institute for Cancer Research and World Cancer Research Fund. 2018. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2023-10-10. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  6. ^ "Cancer: Carcinogenicity of the consumption of red meat and processed meat". IARC. 26 October 2015. Retrieved 19 Sep 2022.
  7. ^ "Does eating processed and red meat cause cancer?". cancerresearchuk.org. Retrieved 30 January 2024.