Is nitrite/nitrate now allowed to be added to non amenable animal tissues?
A. Sodium nitrite and nitrate are listed as approved prior-sanctioned food ingredients in FDA’s regulations based on their documented use for curing “meat,” as meat was defined by the FMIA prior to September 1958. Prior to September 1958, “meat” was defined as being from cattle, sheep, swine, goats, and equines. Therefore, because bison, buffalo, antelope, or other species of animal for human food use was not included in the definition of meat prior to September 1958, nitrite/nitrate cannot be used to formulate products prepared solely from non-amenable species. Thus, there is no change in the regulations on the use of nitrite/nitrate as ingredients. Q.
