Impact of Sodium Ascorbate and Sodium Erythorbate Used in Meat Processing on the Vitamin B ₁₂ Contents of Cured Ham

Effects of sodium ascorbate (Na ascorbate) and sodium erythorbate (Na erythorbate) on vitamin B ]2 content of cured, cooked ham were investigated. Paired hams were injected with cure solution containing no curing accelerators or with cure solution containing Na ascorbate or Na erythorbate (3.28, 6.56, 9.84 g/L). There were no differences between vitamin B 12 contents of hams containing added curing accelerators and paired controls, indicating that B 12 was not destroyed by either Na ascorbate or Na erythorbate. Analysis of ascorbate, dehy‐droascorbate, isoascorbate and dehydroisoascorbate showed ascorbate to be the only substance present in Na ascorbate‐treated hams and isoascorbic acid to be the only substance present in Na erythorbate‐treated hams.