Opinion of the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) on the risks associated with the consumption of nitrites and nitrates

ABSTRACT This document presents the opinion of the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES), established from the work of its Working Group on “Risks associated with the consumption of Nitrites and Nitrates" (NiNa WG) and validated by its Expert Committees on “Assessment of the biological risks in foods” (CES BIORISK) and “Assessment of physico‐chemical risks in food” (CES ERCA). Following a request from the Directorate General for Health, the Directorate General for Food and the Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control, ANSES was asked to deliver an opinion on the risks linked to nitrites and nitrates. Specifically, ANSES provided a scientific assessment associated with the following work themes regarding questions of (i) the impact of reducing nitrite/nitrate levels in foodstuffs on the fate of pathogenic bacteria in certain foods, (ii) the assessment of overall exposure to nitrates and nitrites from all sources in France and the proposal of actions that could help reduce this exposure, (iii) evaluating if new scientific knowledge could justify revisiting EFSA's ADIs/Health‐Based Guidance Values (HBGVs) for nitrates and nitrites, and (iv) better characterizing their link to human cancer risk from meat product consumption. The opinion first presents the substances of interest, their origin and the regulatory framework. Then this opinion sets out the conclusions of the microbiological risk for three foodborne pathogens associated with reducing nitrate/nitrite levels as additives in three types of cured meats. This is followed by a presentation of the conclusions relating to the assessment of the available epidemiological and toxicological data in the light of recent scientific data. Finally, this enables the characterization of the risk associated with ingested nitrates and nitrites after exposure has been estimated. The opinion provides recommendations to continue epidemiological studies to confirm or refute suspected relationships for certain cancers and to conduct experimental studies for the establishment of ADIs considering the combined exposure to nitrates, nitrites and nitroso compounds. Furthermore, reducing the population's exposure to nitrites and nitrates involves collective and individual measures. As part of collective measures, in addition to controlling the quality of water intended for human consumption, a relevant measure would be to reduce the use of nitrites in processed meat products while implementing strict compensatory measures to address microbiological risk. This opinion finally emphasizes the importance of individual measures, by adhering to recommendations for processed meat consumption, limiting it to 150g/week, and diversifying the consumption of fruits and vegetables.

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Publication Details

Journal
Food Risk Assess Europe
Published
2025-04-01
DOI
https://doi.org/10.2903/fr.efsa.2025.fr-0059
Primary Topic
Chemical Analysis and Environmental Impact
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Opinion of the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) on the risks associated with the consumption of nitrites and nitrates

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Chemical Analysis and Environmental Impact
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Opinion of the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES) on the risks associated with the consumption of nitrites and nitrates

Carine Dubuisson, Emmanuelle Kesse‐Guyot, Gilles Bornert, Géraldine Carne, Marie‐Yasmine Dechraoui Bottein, Steven Duret, César Mattei, Thomas Cartier, Christine Demeilliers, Jean‐François Masfaraud, Sandrine Carrillo, Michel Laurentie, Olivier Sorg, Anne Platel, Jeanne‐Marie Membré, Nathalie Jourdan‐Da Silva, Bruno Le Bizec, Noémie Desriac, J. Gauvreau-Beziat, Marie‐Louise Scippo, Anne Walsh, Keyvin Darney, Ludovic Le Hégarat, Frédéric Lirussi, Françoise Gauchard, Morgane Bachelot, Francesca Mancini, Eric Oswald, Juliana De Oliveira Mota, Frédéric Auvray, Frédérique Audiat‐Perrin, Régine Talòn, Petru Jitaru, Jérôme Gay‐Queheillard, Nawel Bemrah, Eric Marchioni, Laurent Guillier, N. R. Rao, Yann Sivry, Sandra Martin‐Latil, Jean‐Cédric Reninger, Mickaël Boni, Émilie Lance, Martine Clauw, Isabelle Villena, Sonia Poisson, Sabine Schorr‐Galindo, Marie‐Pierre Sauvant‐Rochat, Alain‐Claude Roudot, Nicolas Delcourt, Caroline Lanier, Renaud Lailler, Catherine Chubilleau, Aurore Coudray, Sonia Khier, Damien Mouly, Frédéric Carlin, Philippe Fravalo, O Pérez Martín, Florence Dubois‐Brissonnet, Pierre‐Marie Badot, Nicolas Loiseau, Michel Fédérighi, Georges Lognay, Muriel Thomas, Michel Joyeux, Bertrand Lombard, Michèle Gourmelon, Pascal Piveteau, Paule Vasseur, Anne‐Sophie Ficheux, David Makowski, Michel Gautier, Abraham Escobar Gutierrez, Stéphane Guyot, Erwan Engel, Claude Atgié, Laïla Lakhal
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT This document presents the opinion of the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety (ANSES), established from the work of its Working Group on “Risks associated with the consumption of Nitrites and Nitrates" (NiNa WG) and validated by its Expert Committees on “Assessment of the biological risks in foods” (CES BIORISK) and “Assessment of physico‐chemical risks in food” (CES ERCA). Following a request from the Directorate General for Health, the Directorate General for Food and the Directorate General for Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control, ANSES was asked to deliver an opinion on the risks linked to nitrites and nitrates. Specifically, ANSES provided a scientific assessment associated with the following work themes regarding questions of (i) the impact of reducing nitrite/nitrate levels in foodstuffs on the fate of pathogenic bacteria in certain foods, (ii) the assessment of overall exposure to nitrates and nitrites from all sources in France and the proposal of actions that could help reduce this exposure, (iii) evaluating if new scientific knowledge could justify revisiting EFSA's ADIs/Health‐Based Guidance Values (HBGVs) for nitrates and nitrites, and (iv) better characterizing their link to human cancer risk from meat product consumption. The opinion first presents the substances of interest, their origin and the regulatory framework. Then this opinion sets out the conclusions of the microbiological risk for three foodborne pathogens associated with reducing nitrate/nitrite levels as additives in three types of cured meats. This is followed by a presentation of the conclusions relating to the assessment of the available epidemiological and toxicological data in the light of recent scientific data. Finally, this enables the characterization of the risk associated with ingested nitrates and nitrites after exposure has been estimated. The opinion provides recommendations to continue epidemiological studies to confirm or refute suspected relationships for certain cancers and to conduct experimental studies for the establishment of ADIs considering the combined exposure to nitrates, nitrites and nitroso compounds. Furthermore, reducing the population's exposure to nitrites and nitrates involves collective and individual measures. As part of collective measures, in addition to controlling the quality of water intended for human consumption, a relevant measure would be to reduce the use of nitrites in processed meat products while implementing strict compensatory measures to address microbiological risk. This opinion finally emphasizes the importance of individual measures, by adhering to recommendations for processed meat consumption, limiting it to 150g/week, and diversifying the consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Food Risk Assess EuropeVol. 3(2)
Agence Nationale de Sécurité Sanitaire de l’Alimentation, de l’Environnement et du Travail
Openalex Percentile: Top 56%
Chemical Analysis and Environmental Impact
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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