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Can I eat salami while pregnant?

Check Doola Scan's answer in the United States

Cold salami shows Check in Doola Scan for the US, UK and Canada and Avoid for Australia, New Zealand and Ireland; cooked until steaming hot, as when it's baked on a pizza, it shows Check in all six. Salami is a cold cured meat. The NHS asks for cured meats such as salami to be cooked until steaming hot, and the FDA asks the same for fermented and dry sausage. Ireland's HSE lists cold cured meats such as salami as foods to avoid.

Checked against Doola Scan's pregnancy rules · Updated

  • Cold salami, sliced from a pack, the deli or a charcuterie board

    CheckUnited StatesUnited KingdomCanadaAvoidAustraliaNew ZealandIreland

  • Salami cooked until steaming hot, crisped in a pan or the oven

    CheckIn all six countries

  • Salami baked on a pizza

    CheckIn all six countries
Doola Scan checking a plate
What each country says

Salami while pregnant: what each country says.

Each country's own pregnancy guidance on salami, with a link to it. Doola Scan uses your country's first.

  • United States

    Check
    • FDAAvoid deli meats, fermented and dry sausage unless reheated until steaming hot.Source
    • FDAListeria grows at fridge temperatures; heating kills it.Source
    • FoodSafety.gov (HHS)Reheat hot dogs, deli meats and fermented or dry sausage to steaming hot or 165°F.Source
    • USDA FSISPregnant mothers should avoid deli meats and hot dogs not heated to 165°F.Source

  • United Kingdom

    Check
    • NHSCured meat may carry listeria or toxoplasma.Source
    • NHSCold cured meats (salami, pepperoni, chorizo, prosciutto) should be cooked until steaming hot.Source

  • Canada

    Check
    • CPSOnly non-dried deli meats are listed; dried cured meats are not.Source
    • Health CanadaDried and salted deli meats such as salami and pepperoni are listed as SAFER alternatives (no cooking/freezing needed).Source
    • CPSAvoid uncooked hot dogs and non-dried deli meats.Source
    • Health CanadaHot dogs not straight from pack - heat to 74 °C; avoid non-dried deli meats (bologna, roast beef, turkey) unless steaming hot.Source

  • Australia

    • Cold salami, sliced from a pack, the deli or a charcuterie boardAvoid
    • Salami cooked until steaming hot, crisped in a pan or the ovenCheck
    • Salami baked on a pizzaCheck
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Avoid ham, salami and fermented meats unless cooked or heated.Source
    • NSW Food AuthorityProcessed meats only if cooked to at least 75°C and eaten soon after.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Avoid cold cured meats (salami, ham, luncheon meat) unless cooked to 75 °C and eaten straight away.Source
    • NSW HealthDo not eat cold deli meats.Source
    • Better Health Channel (Victoria)Deli meats only if further cooked or heated.Source
    • FSANZAvoid unpackaged deli-counter and packaged sliced cold meats unless freshly cooked or reheated steaming hot.Source
    • Pregnancy, Birth and Baby (Australian Government Dept of Health)Processed meats only if cooked to at least 75°C and eaten straight away.Source

  • New Zealand

    • Cold salami, sliced from a pack, the deli or a charcuterie boardAvoid
    • Salami cooked until steaming hot, crisped in a pan or the ovenCheck
    • Salami baked on a pizzaCheck
    • MPI (NZ Food Safety)Avoid processed meats (ham, pâté, salami, luncheon) in pregnancy.Source
    • Health NZAvoid cold meats from deli counters and sandwich bars, and packaged sliced ready-to-eat meats.Source

  • Ireland

    • Cold salami, sliced from a pack, the deli or a charcuterie boardAvoid
    • Salami cooked until steaming hot, crisped in a pan or the ovenCheck
    • Salami baked on a pizzaCheck
    • HSEAvoid cold cured meats such as salami, parma ham, chorizo and pepperoni.Source
What to check

Before you eat salami.

  1. Cook it until steaming hot

    The NHS asks for cold cured meats such as salami, pepperoni, chorizo and prosciutto to be cooked until steaming hot before eating. FoodSafety.gov gives the number as 165°F for fermented or dry sausage. NHS

  2. Eat it straight after heating

    Pregnancy, Birth and Baby asks you to avoid cold cured meats such as salami unless they're cooked to 75°C and eaten straight away. Salami crisped in the oven and left to cool no longer meets that. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby

  3. In New Zealand and Ireland, leave cold salami off the plate

    Ireland's HSE lists cold cured meats such as salami, parma ham, chorizo and pepperoni as foods to avoid. New Zealand's MPI asks you to avoid processed meats such as ham and salami in pregnancy. HSE

Questions

About salami
in pregnancy.

Salami baked on the pizza shows Check in all six countries, because it's cooked with it. Slices added cold after baking are cold salami: Check in the US, UK and Canada, Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland.

Yes: fry the slices until they crisp, bake them on a pizza, or cook them into pasta until steaming hot all the way through. FoodSafety.gov's number for dry sausage is 165°F, and Pregnancy, Birth and Baby's is at least 75°C.

Health Canada lists dried and salted deli meats, such as salami and pepperoni, among its "safer" choices, while the FDA in the US asks for dry sausage to be reheated until steaming hot. Doola Scan shows Check for cold salami in Canada.

Doola Scan reads both as cold salami: Check in the US, UK and Canada and Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland. Cooked until steaming hot, salami shows Check in all six.

If you've eaten cold salami and you're worried, talk to your midwife or doctor. They can tell you what to look out for.

The guidance is the same in every trimester. The advice on cold cured meats applies from the first weeks of pregnancy to the last.

Cooked until steaming hot, salami shows Check in all six countries. Cold, it shows Avoid in Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and Check in the US, UK and Canada.

Yes. Take a photo of the plate, the pack or the menu, and Doola Scan checks it against your country's pregnancy guidance, with what to ask, such as whether the salami is baked on. Food scans are free, 3 a day.
Doola Scan

Not sure about a meal? Scan it.

Point Doola at a plate, a menu or a label. It checks every ingredient against your country's pregnancy guidance and shows its sources. Food scans are free, 3 a day.

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Doola shows what official guidance says; it never diagnoses. No known issues means none of these countries' pregnancy guidance names it, not a promise that a food is safe.