Suggestion for a subdivision of processed meat products on the Danish market based on their content of carcinogenic compounds.

Carcinogenic effects in humans are ascribed to processed meat by organisations such as International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Cancer Research Fund and American Institute for Cancer Research. However, the term ‘processed meat’ covers a heterogenic group of products whose content of potential hazards differ considerably. To improve estimates of associations between processed meat intake and cancer risk we investigated ways to divide processed meat into subgroups that more precisely reflects its carcinogenic characteristics.