N-nitrosamine Formation in Foods: Role of Nitrates, Nitrites, Processing and Storage

Objective:Only competent organisations, based on designations by Member States, are eligible to apply to the call.N-nitrosamines are genotoxic and carcinogenic compounds occurring in food. Their formation has been linked to the presence of nitrates and nitrites in food, mainly in processed food products. The EFSA’s evaluations on nitrates and nitrites as food additives and on N-nitrosamines in food indicated the need of further studies on the levels of N-nitrosamines formed in different processed meat products with known ingoing amounts of nitrates /nitrites added and in foods other than processed meat (i.e. raw meats, vegetables, cereals, milk and dairy products, fermented foods, pickled preserves, spiced foods, etc.) as well as in all products when cooked in different ways. This call for proposals seeks to address these recommendations by analysing nitrates, nitrites and N-nitrosamines in processed and unprocessed meat, fish, cheese and leafy vegetables food model products under different cooking types and storage conditions. The objective of this call for proposals is to investigate possible correlations between nitrates/nitrites and nitrosamines, and the role of cooking and storage on nitrosamine formation.