NEARLY three-quarters of Scottish councils are offering pupils processed meat which contains a chemical linked to cancer, the Herald on Sunday can reveal.

A majority of local authorities are providing ham options that include nitrites, a preservative experts have warned can lead to an increased risk of bowel cancer.

Bacon, pepperoni and corned beef are other so-called “nitro meat" that are available as part of the school meal service.

Labour MSP Monica Lennon said: "There should be no hesitation over nitrites; they must be removed from the school menu immediately."

In 2015, an agency of the World Health Organisation concluded that the consumption of processed meat causes bowel cancer. Each 50 gram portion eaten daily was estimated to increase the risk by 18%.

Processed meat was placed in the same category as tobacco smoking and asbestos, but the WHO made clear they are not equally as dangerous.

The WHO’s findings, which made headlines across the world, were based on advice from over 20 cancer experts from ten countries, and rooted in a review of more than 400 studies.

One of the cancer-causing agents, according to the WHO, is “N-nitroso”, which forms during meat processing. N-nitroso compounds occur if the meat contains added nitrite. One of the preservatives in processed meat is sodium nitrite (E250).

Governments across the world have been urged to introduce a so-called “meat tax”, but health specialists and campaigners have been disappointed by what they regard as a lack of action.

One of the scientists who co-authored the WHO report this month criticised the UK Government over its response. In a letter to Health Secretary Matt Hancock and the EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Professor Denis Corpet urged officials to ensure that processed meat no longer included nitrites.

“The failure of governments globally to engage on this public health scandal is nothing less than a dereliction of duty – both in regards to the number of cancer cases that could be avoided by ridding nitrites from processed meats – and in the potential to reduce the strain on increasingly stretched and underfunded public health services,” he wrote.

He said a specific focus should on publicising the risks of cooked ham, due to its popularity with school children.

“The vast majority of ham contains these cancer causing chemicals, and the vast majority of parents are not aware of the risks.”

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He added: “It is surely the responsibility of your administrations to educate parents of the risks posed by ham in their children’s lunchbox – and to facilitate the growth of safer nitrite-free agenda."

Baroness Walmsley, the vice-chair of Westminster's all-party group on cancer, said at the time: "The WHO's 2015 report incontrovertibility linked nitrite-cured processed meats to colorectal cancer.

"I share Professor Corpet's frustration there has been such little response from our government – and we should all heed his warning that nitrites specifically in ham, eaten in such great quantities by children, pose a serious health risk.”

In Scotland, local authorities deliver school meals, but the councils comply nutritional standards set nationally.

This newspaper asked all 32 Scottish councils two questions: whether the ham they serve contains nitrites; and whether the same chemical compound is in other cured meats. Twenty-three councils provided a “yes” answer to the question on ham, with 18 local authorities confirming nitrites are present in other processed meats.

Scottish Borders council said nitrite is used as a preservative for the bacon and ham it offers, and is present in the pepperoni added to pizzas. A spokesman added that the council has reduced ham sandwich availability and limited the choice of processed meats in high schools over the last 18 months.

“Neither bacon or pepperoni would be available in primary schools,” he said.

This council, in common with other local authorities, is waiting for the Scottish Government to provide the specifics of new standards on red processed meat in schools.

East Ayrshire council confirmed nitrites are present in ham and other cured meats, as did East Dunbartonshire, while Falkirk said sodium nitrite is in the sliced ham and pepperoni toppings. Stirling sometimes uses a local supplier for cooked ham that contains nitrites.

Highland said the preservative is in “all the ham in both primary and secondary” schools, Midlothian confirmed nitrites are in their ham and bacon, while in Orkney E250 is in ham and other cured meats. Moray uses two ham products with sodium nitrite.

Other councils provided a greater volume of information. East Lothian said it was present in dozens of processed meat products, including ham, pork, corned beef, chipolata links, bacon and gammon steaks.

East Renfrewshire released information which showed E250 is in over thirty meat items. Inverclyde and Fife provided a similarly detailed list. Comhairle nan Eilean Siar and North Lanarkshire said “some” ham and other cured meats have sodium nitrite in them.

The latter council added: “North Lanarkshire Council is currently considering food for life standards for primary schools and will be reviewing the sourcing of cooked meat products. In addition, the number of times that processed meats (ham) in particular appear on the menu is being considered for reduction at the next menu change in April 2019.”

Three local authorities - Dundee, Angus, and Perth and Kinross - hire an outside firm, Tayside Contracts, to deliver school meals. The firm said three products contained sodium nitrite.

Renfrewshire said nitrites are included as an ingredient in the cooked ham in schools, while South Ayrshire council said “yes” to both questions. Edinburgh confirmed the ham they use contains nitrites, as does bacon for secondary school pupils.

Three councils - Glasgow, South Lanarkshire and Shetland - said nitrites are not present in either ham or other cured meats. A handful of local authorities did not provide a response.

A spokesperson for Glasgow council said: “The ham products used in our school catering services were tested and selected primarily because of their low salt levels, in general, but the lack of these preservatives in our chosen products is an added benefit.”

Some supermarkets are now selling nitrite-free meat. Aldi, Waitrose, Asda and Tesco are amongst the outlets offering bacon without the chemical compound. French journalist Guillaume Coudray has written that we should refer to “nitro-meat”, not processed meat.

The revelations come after The Herald reported that bowel cancer rates among younger Scots are on the rise. One child aged 10 to 14 was diagnosed between 1992 and 2012, but this increased to eight diagnoses between 2013 and 2016.

There were 11 cases among 15 to 19 years olds between 1992 and 2011, but the figure rocketed to 32 in the five years between 2012 and 2016.

A debate is now taking place on what, if anything, policy-makers should do in response. In 2017, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) concluded that consumer exposure to nitrites and nitrates as food additives is within “safe levels for all population groups”, except for a “slight exceedance in children whose diet is high in foods containing these additives”.

The EFSA added that “if all dietary sources of nitrites and nitrates are considered, the safe levels (ADIs) may be exceeded for all age groups”.

A spokesperson for the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers said: “Member companies produce high quality meat that provides consumers with essential nutrients as part of a healthy, well balanced diet. All our member businesses are closely regulated by Food Standards Scotland whose priority, across all forms of food produced in Scotland, is the health and well being of consumers. We obviously respect the guidance and advice we receive from FSS on all health issues and respond professionally and positively to such guidance, which should be based on sound scientific proof.”

However, a cross-party coalition of health specialists and politicians urged the UK Government in December to intervene on nitrites.

"There is a consensus of scientific opinion that nitrites in processed meats result in the production of carcinogenic nitrosamines - and therefore increase cancer risk for those who regularly consume traditional bacon and ham," they said.

"For these reasons, we are concerned that not enough is being done to raise awareness of nitrites in our processed meat and their health risks, in stark contrast to warnings regularly issued regarding sugar and fattening foods.

"We must work together to raise awareness of their risks and encourage the much wider use of nitrite-free alternatives that are safer and can reduce the number of cancer cases."

Signatories included Professor Chris Elliott, director of the Queen's University Belfast Institute for Global Food Safety, senior cardiologist Dr Aseem Malhotra, nutritionist Chris Gill, and a range of parliamentarians.

Professor Annie S Anderson, who is a professor of public health nutrition and medical adviser for Bowel Cancer UK, said: “We know that that processed meats such as bacon, ham, salami, and some sausages can increase your risk of bowel cancer, and there is emerging evidence about the role that nitrates may potentially play in this risk.

“We know that 3,700 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer every year in Scotland, making it the third most common cancer in the country. A few simple changes to your lifestyle can help stack the odds against bowel cancer. As well as avoiding processed meats, limiting our intake of red meat, being of a healthy weight and taking more exercise will make a real difference.”

A spokesperson for Cosla, the umbrella group for councils, said: “Local authorities adhere closely to established, expertly developed and agreed national nutritional standards. This includes the guidance from the Scottish Government in relation to processed meat.”