Is Bacon Red Meat or White Meat? A Complete Breakdown

Bacon has a distinctive pinkish-red color when raw and cooked, leading many to assume it is a red meat. But pork has a history of being marketed as “the other white meat.” So which is it – is bacon considered red meat or white meat? This classification has implications for nutrition guidelines, so it’s important to understand where bacon truly fits.

In this article, we’ll explore the complex factors that contribute to the categorization of meats and see how bacon is currently classified by both science and culinary tradition.

What Makes a Meat Red or White?

There are a few key criteria used to divide meats into “red” and “white” categories:

• Myoglobin content – Myoglobin is the protein responsible for red color in meat. Red meats like beef have more myoglobin.

• Fat marbling – White meats tend to have less visible fat marbling compared to high-fat red meats like lamb

• Iron content – Red meats generally have more iron than white meats,

• Livestock vs. poultry/fish – Red meats come from mammal livestock like cows, pigs, and sheep. White meats are poultry (chickens, turkeys) and fish.

When these factors are considered together, patterns emerge that divide meats into two main groups – red and white. But there are always exceptions, and pork has been confounding categories for decades.

Where Pork Fits In

Pork is tricky to classify because it falls somewhere in the middle on measures like myoglobin content and fat marbling. Here’s how it generally compares:

• Myoglobin – More than chicken and fish, but less than beef. Closer to red meat.

• Fat marbling – More than chicken, less than lamb. In between red and white.

• Iron – On par with most white meats.

• Livestock – As a farm mammal like beef and lamb, pork is considered livestock and red meat.

While leaning more white on some measures, pork is scientifically considered a red meat because it comes from a livestock animal. But the culinary world treats it as white meat. So which is correct?

The Scientific View: Pork is Red Meat

Nutritionally and scientifically speaking, pork is classified as a red meat because pigs are livestock animals genetically similar to cattle.

Here’s why science considers pork a red meat:

• Pork has more myoglobin than chicken and fish.

• It has more fat marbling than chicken or turkey.

• Pork comes from a mammal livestock animal like beef and lamb.

• The USDA, WHO, and other institutions categorize pork as red meat.

So while pork may have lighter coloring than beef, scientifically it falls into the red meat category based on its animal source and myoglobin content.

The Culinary View: Pork is White Meat

Culinarily, pork is prepared, plated, and paired as a white meat:

• Chefs treat pork as similar to chicken in dishes, often substituting between them.

• Pork is milder and less strongly flavored like white meat.

• A 1980s marketing campaign branded pork as “the other white meat.”

• Recipes, restaurants, and home cooks largely view pork as a white meat.

So the culinary tradition considers pork a white meat, even though this contradicts the scientific designation.

What About Bacon Specifically?

Now that we’ve covered pork in general, what about bacon? Here are the factors that point to bacon being a red meat:

• Made from pork, which comes from a red meat livestock animal.

• Has a distinctive red lean color, thanks to myoglobin content.

• Higher in fat than pork chops or roasts due to fatty belly meat.

• Cured and smoked like other processed red meats such as ham.

• Nutritionally closer to red meat than chicken or fish.

So while pork can be blurry, bacon is pretty clearly in the red meat camp based on both nutritional science and culinary traditions. The high myoglobin content is what gives bacon its signature pinkish-red hue.

Nutritional Guidelines Reflect Red Meat Status

International and national dietary guidelines universally recognize pork and bacon as red meats:

• The USDA MyPlate classifies pork as a red meat.

• The World Health Organization includes pork and processed pork like bacon in red meat categories for nutritional guidelines.

• Studies on colon cancer risk from processed meats put bacon in the same category as beef hot dogs and lunch meats.

• UK dietary guidelines count bacon and pork products as red meat servings.

So while culinary tradition may see pork as somewhat neutral, all formal nutritional guidance considers bacon a red meat.

Implications of Red Meat Classification

There are some implications of bacon being labeled a red meat rather than white:

• Nutritional profile – Red meats are higher in fat, iron, zinc and B12 compared to white meat. Therefore nutrition data for bacon aligns it with beef more than chicken.

• Cancer risk – Processed red meats like bacon and ham have been associated with a small increased risk of colorectal cancer.

• Environmental impact – Red meats generally have a higher carbon footprint than chicken or plant proteins.

• Dietary guidelines – Red meat intake, especially processed red meat, is often recommended in moderation as part of a healthy diet.

While these associations are still debated, they do reflect the general guidance around red meat compared to white.

The Takeaway: It’s Both!

While nutrition science conclusively categorizes pork and bacon as red meat, culinary tradition still straddles the line. So is bacon red or white? The takeaway is that it can be considered both:

• Scientifically, bacon clearly falls into the red meat category based on animal source and myoglobin content.

• Culinarily, pork and bacon are treated as more of a neutral-colored meat compared to beef.

• For dietary guidelines and nutrition tracking, bacon is firmly in the red meat and processed meat categories.

• But recipes and restaurants will continue treating bacon as an interchangeable protein alongside white meats.

The reality is that the “red” and “white” labels are less meaningful for health impact than specific attributes like fat content, sodium level, and preservatives used. Rather than fixating on color labels, focus on incorporating quality proteins as part of an overall balanced diet. Enjoy bacon in moderation as you would other salty, cured processed meats.

So while splitting hairs between red or white, the most important thing is that bacon tastes delicious! Understanding the neutral nutritional reality of bacon and pork allows you to savor them guilt-free as part of a healthy lifestyle.