Do Ball Park Franks Have Nitrites? Yes, So Do Oscar Mayer's

Both current ingredient statements list sodium nitrite, and per serving the Ball Park frank carries more sodium and fat than the Oscar Mayer link because it is heavier (53 g vs 42 g); gram for gram, sodium and fat are almost identical.

Key takeaways

• Both current ingredient statements list sodium nitrite, and neither lists celery juice.
• Per serving, sodium is 480 mg (20% DV) for one Ball Park frank (53 g) and 380 mg (17% DV) for one Oscar Mayer link (42 g).
• Fat is 15 g per 53 g Ball Park frank and 12 g per 42 g Oscar Mayer link.
• Older Open Food Facts records list celery-derived ingredients and no sodium nitrite for these products, so compare the package in your hand with its label.
• Under 9 CFR 317.17, a product that may be made with nitrate or nitrite but is prepared without them must use "Uncured" before the product name and "No Nitrate or Nitrite Added" adjacent to the name.

Ball Park Beef Hot Dogs (16 ct) and Oscar Mayer Classic Beef Franks (10 ct, 15 oz) are compared here using current brand product pages and older third-party records. Package counts come from the product names, and all nutrition values are per serving. Older Open Food Facts records for Ball Park and Oscar Mayer list celery-derived ingredients instead of sodium nitrite. A separate Ball Park USDA Prime page lists celery-derived ingredients for a different product. The recipe on the package in your hand is the one that counts.

At a glance (per serving, as listed on each brand's product page)

Factor	Ball Park Beef Hot Dogs (16 ct)	Oscar Mayer Classic Beef Franks (10 ct, 15 oz)
Serving size	1 frank (53 g)	1 link (42 g)
Servings per container	16	Not disclosed
Calories	170	140
Total fat	15 g (23% DV)	12 g (16% DV)
Saturated fat	6 g (30% DV)	5 g (26% DV)
Trans fat	1 g	0 g
Cholesterol	30 mg (10% DV)	30 mg (10% DV)
Sodium	480 mg (20% DV)	380 mg (17% DV)
Total carbohydrate	4 g	2 g
Total sugars	1 g	1 g
Protein	6 g	5 g
Sodium nitrite in current ingredient list	Yes	Yes
Celery juice in current ingredient list	Not listed	Not listed

Source for the sodium nitrite and celery juice rows: current ingredient statements on the Ball Park product page and the Oscar Mayer product page. Oscar Mayer's servings per container are not disclosed, so the 10 ct count from the product name is not treated as a per-container nutrition figure.

What Are the Ingredients in Ball Park (16 ct) vs Oscar Mayer Classic (10 ct)?

Both current ingredient statements include salt, potassium lactate, sodium phosphate, sodium diacetate, and sodium nitrite. The rest of each list differs in flavorings and seasonings.

The Ball Park Beef Hot Dogs ingredient statement reads: "Beef, water, corn syrup, contains 2% or less: salt, potassium lactate, hydrolyzed beef stock, sodium phosphate, flavorings, sodium diacetate, sodium erythorbate, sodium nitrite, extractives of paprika." The brand page states "Meat used is 100% Beef" and "No Fillers or By-Products."

The Oscar Mayer Classic Beef Franks ingredient statement reads: "BEEF, WATER, DEXTROSE, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF SALT, POTASSIUM LACTATE, CORN SYRUP, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, SODIUM DIACETATE, SODIUM ASCORBATE, DRIED GARLIC, PAPRIKA OLEORESIN, BLACK PEPPER, SODIUM NITRITE." The brand page says "Made with 100% beef, no fillers, no by-products."

A few differences are easy to spot when you read the two lists side by side:

• Ball Park lists corn syrup, hydrolyzed beef stock, flavorings, sodium erythorbate, and paprika extractives.
• Oscar Mayer lists dextrose, sodium ascorbate, dried garlic, paprika oleoresin, and black pepper.
• Ball Park describes its salt as "2% or less." Oscar Mayer describes its salt as "less than 2%."

Ingredients are listed by weight, so the position of each item shows its relative amount in the recipe.

How Much Sodium Is in Ball Park (16 ct) vs Oscar Mayer Classic (10 ct) per Serving?

One Ball Park frank (53 g) lists 480 mg of sodium, or 20% DV, while one Oscar Mayer link (42 g) lists 380 mg, or 17% DV.

The FDA sets the Daily Value for sodium at less than 2,300 mg per day. Under FDA's Daily Value guidance, 5% DV or less per serving is low, and 20% DV or more per serving is high. The Ball Park frank's 20% DV meets the high threshold. The Oscar Mayer link's 17% DV is neither low nor high under these thresholds. These are labeling categories for one serving, not an overall verdict on either product.

The serving sizes differ (53 g and 42 g), so the per-serving figures describe different amounts of food. Per 100 g, that works out to about 906 mg of sodium for Ball Park and about 905 mg for Oscar Mayer, so gram for gram the two are almost identical. Readers who track sodium may want to read the Nutrition Facts panel on the package they buy, since recipes and labels can change.

Ball Park's USDA Prime Beef Hot Dogs (14 ct) are a different product. That page lists 710 mg sodium (30% DV) for one 76 g frank.

How Much Fat Is in Ball Park (16 ct) vs Oscar Mayer Classic (10 ct)?

One Ball Park frank has 15 g total fat (23% DV) and 6 g saturated fat (30% DV). One Oscar Mayer link has 12 g total fat (16% DV) and 5 g saturated fat (26% DV).

The Ball Park frank also lists 1 g trans fat, while the Oscar Mayer link lists 0 g. Both list 30 mg cholesterol (10% DV) per serving. Per 100 g, total fat works out to about 28 g for both franks, so the per-serving gap comes from the heavier Ball Park frank.

Federal rules set limits on fat in these products. Under 9 CFR 319.180, which covers frankfurters, franks, hot dogs, and wieners, the finished product may contain no more than 30 percent fat, and no more than 40 percent fat plus added water combined. The labels discussed here do not state each product's fat percentage by weight, so the per-serving figures cannot show whether either product meets those limits. That is a limit of the available data, not a finding about either product.

Do Ball Park (16 ct) and Oscar Mayer Classic (10 ct) Contain Sodium Nitrite?

Both current ingredient statements name sodium nitrite, and neither names celery juice. Older ingredient records for both brands show celery-derived ingredients instead.

Do Ball Park hot dogs have nitrates?

The current Ball Park Beef Hot Dogs (16 ct) ingredient statement lists sodium nitrite, not sodium nitrate; the amount per 53 g frank was not disclosed. The older Open Food Facts record for a Ball Park UPC lists celery juice powder, natural flavor, and sea salt, with no sodium nitrite. That record was last modified in 2021 and carries a mislabeled product name, so it is a limit on how well it describes the current recipe.

The Ball Park USDA Prime Beef Hot Dogs (14 ct) page, a separate product, lists "natural flavor (celery)" and "sea salt" instead of sodium nitrite. The page says "No Nitrates or Nitrates Added except those naturally occurring in celery juice and sea salt."

Do Oscar Mayer hot dogs have nitrates?

The current Oscar Mayer Classic Beef Franks ingredient statement lists sodium nitrite and does not list nitrate; the amount per 1 link (42 g) was not disclosed.

An older Open Food Facts scan of an Oscar Mayer UPC lists cultured celery juice and cultured dextrose, followed by a 'contains less than 2% of' list, with no sodium nitrite. Because the current brand page shows sodium nitrite, that older scan is a limit on describing the current recipe. Retailer listings may still show older wording.

What Does an "Uncured" Label Mean on These Two Hot Dog Packages?

Under 9 CFR 317.17, a product that may be made with nitrate or nitrite but is prepared without them must use "Uncured" before the product name and "No Nitrate or Nitrite Added" adjacent to the name. This rule governs that label wording for products prepared without added nitrate or nitrite.

Are Oscar Mayer hot dogs uncured?

No, the current Oscar Mayer Classic Beef Franks page lists sodium nitrite (1 link, 42 g), so the product is not shown as uncured there. An older Open Food Facts scan lists cultured celery juice and no sodium nitrite, which resembles an uncured recipe. Whether every store package matches the brand page was not disclosed.

Which hot dog brands have no nitrites?

Among the labels discussed here, the Ball Park USDA Prime Beef Hot Dogs (14 ct) page and older scans for both brands list celery-derived ingredients rather than sodium nitrite. The current Ball Park (16 ct) and Oscar Mayer (10 ct, 15 oz) pages both list sodium nitrite. Whether celery-cured hot dogs contain less nitrite than sodium-nitrite hot dogs is not established by the labels discussed here.

Who Should Be Cautious About Sodium Nitrite and Sodium in These Hot Dogs?

Readers who limit sodium may find the per-serving figures most useful: 480 mg (20% DV) for the Ball Park frank and 380 mg (17% DV) for the Oscar Mayer link. The FDA's 2,300 mg per day Daily Value is a general reference, not an individual target.

The available sources do not address how these products affect pregnant people, children, people with kidney or heart conditions, or anyone taking medication. Individual responses can differ. Anyone with a health concern about sodium or nitrites should ask a clinician.

The evidence here cannot establish a health outcome for either product, and this page does not give health risk numbers for nitrites or processed meat.

How Do You Spot Sodium Nitrite or Celery Juice on a Hot Dog Label?

Scan the ingredient statement for these terms, then check the front of the package for curing wording:

• Sodium nitrite or sodium nitrate, which are listed by name in the current Ball Park and Oscar Mayer statements.
• Celery juice powder, cultured celery juice, or natural flavor (celery), which appear in some older or alternate recipes.
• The word "Uncured" before the product name, which USDA requires when a product is prepared without added nitrate or nitrite.
• The phrase "No Nitrate or Nitrite Added" next to the product name.
• The serving size and the sodium and fat values per serving, since these differ between packages.

Compare the package with the brand website. Retailer listings and older third-party records can lag behind a recipe change.

What Other Hot Dog and Sausage Comparisons Can Help You Read Labels?

If you are comparing curing and nitrite labels in other meats, Does Oscar Mayer Bacon Have Nitrites? Yes, and So Does Hormel covers the same kinds of ingredient and label terms for bacon. For sodium across another hot dog pair, see Hebrew National vs Nathan's: Sodium 480 mg vs 400 mg.

The figures above come from the brand pages and older third-party records cited here. Read the Nutrition Facts panel and ingredient statement on the package in front of you, because current labels may differ from what is shown online.

Related reading: For franks inside a batter, see Is State Fair Healthier Than Foster Farms? Both 20% Sodium, which compares sodium, added sugars, protein and curing agents per corn dog.