He was conscientious of the the bacteria issue and seems to have gone beyond with the salt 4% for added safety considering he is not precisely controling the cure temp. With Nitrate, the biggest concern is too much. It is effective at killing Clostridium Botulinum at pretty low levels. So what he is doing is most likely fine. However, since there is no way, short of testing, to know how much Nitrate there is in Celery Powder, or even if it is consistent from batch to batch, makes it a risky choice and not recommended for our members. I attempted to straighten out his misunderstandings about Celery Powder in a comment but it is being held for moderation. He does have a Sweet smoker setup!...JJ