Unwrapped Food

Northamptonshire Cured Ham

Houghton Hams

5019432441232

Processing

4

Ultra-processed

Group 4 of 4 on the NOVA scale

Additives listed

5

1 we grade moderate or higher

4 of them not yet assessed here

Salt per 100g

2.50g

High

UK FSA front of pack threshold

Three separate readings, kept apart on purpose. This is not a score, and none of it says this product is harmful.

Additives (5)

This label lists 2 acidity regulators, 1 antioxidant, 1 preservative and 1 raising agent.

E251 Sodium nitrate
Preservative, cured meats and some cheeses Higher concern strong evidence

What it is. A curing agent that slowly converts to nitrite in the product, giving a longer acting preservative effect.

Why it is used. Used in dry cured meats and a few traditional cheeses.

What the evidence says. Sits under the same processed meat evidence as nitrite, since it ends up as nitrite in the food. Same practical takeaway: the issue is regular processed meat intake, not a trace in one meal.

Regulatory status UK Permitted with limits or a warning EU Permitted with limits or a warning US Permitted with limits or a warning

Permitted with maximum levels, tightened in the EU alongside nitrite.

Assessed against IARC, EFSA, UK FSA. Full entry for E251

Also on the label, not assessed here yet

  • E301 Sodium ascorbate antioxidant
  • E331 Sodium citrates acidity regulator
  • E450 Diphosphates raising agent
  • E451 Triphosphates acidity regulator

Names and jobs come from the register of additives permitted in Great Britain, which we have not finished transcribing: a code shown without a name is a gap in our coverage, not a finding that it is unapproved. Naming one is not grading it either. Full detail appears only where we have an assessment against a named authority, so all of this describes our coverage rather than these additives. Most are common and low concern.

Ingredients

British Pork Leg, Salt, Stabilisers (Triphosphates; Diphosphates), Sugar, Yeast, Extract, Dextrose, Antioxidants, (Sodium ascorbate; Sodium citrate), Preservative (Sodium nitrate), Natural Flavouring.

As printed on the pack, in the producer's own order: ingredients are listed by weight, so what comes first is most of what is in it. E numbers link to their assessment where we have one.

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