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With a deluge of recent headlines linking processed foods to , chronic diseases and , their status as society’s modern scourge seems assured. But are we wise to view all processed foods with equal disdain?

These foods range from the minimally processed – frozen vegetables, plain yogurt and dried fruit – to the ultra-processed – crisps, sauces, soft drinks and sausages. We think of this latter group as a product of modern society, and yet there are references to sausages, for example, in Homer’s Odyssey, and during Roman Emperor Nero’s rule in AD 54 to AD 68 there…