Following the publication of the report by the WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) that put processed meat such as ham and bacon in the same category of cancer risk as tobacco and asbestos, the organisation released a clarification statement on Thursday, saying Monday's report "does not ask people to stop eating processed meats". The statement said the report, rather, "indicates that reducing consumption of these products can reduce the risk of colorectal cancer."

The WHO published the statement following what it says were "a number of queries, expressions of concern and requests for clarification" in the wake of Monday's publication.

The IARC's report said that a 50-year-old man has 0.68% risk of getting colorectal cancer in the next 10 years; eating processed meat increases it to 0.8%, an increase of 18%. Red meat was placed in a lower risk group than processed meat, although it was still classified by the report as "probably carcinogenic".

The clarification said the IARC’s report confirms the recommendation in the WHO’s 2002 Diet, Nutrition and the Prevention of Chronic Diseases paper, which advises people to moderate consumption of preserved meat to reduce the risk of cancer.

The WHO tweeted from its account after the clarification, asking people to re-appraise the report in greater context. One of the tweets noted that despite processed meats being placed in the same category as tobacco and asbestos, the health risks of processed meat are "vastly different" to those two substances, adding that there is no "safe level of exposure" for tobacco and asbestos as there is for processed meat.

The WHO has a standing group of experts who regularly evaluate the links between diet and disease. Early next year they will meet to begin looking at the public health implications of the latest science and the place of processed meat and red meat within the context of an overall healthy diet.

The Irish Farmers Journal has carried a series of reaction articles to the report since it was published, calling for the public to appraise it in more context. The need for context was confirmed by Thursday's clarification by the WHO.