Calcium propionate (E282)

No. Calcium propionate (E282) is not one of the markers Open Food Facts uses to classify a food as processed or ultra-processed, so on its own it doesn't raise a product's NOVA group.

What it is

Calcium propionate is a preservative that stops mould growing on bread and other baked goods.

A product that contains it can still be ultra-processed for other reasons: 724 of the 795 products here that contain calcium propionate (E282) (91%) are in group 4 because of other ingredients or additives.

Function

Preservative: Preservatives are substances which prolong the shelf-life of foods by protecting them against deterioration caused by micro-organisms and/or which protect against growth of pathogenic micro-organisms.

Functional class definitions from the EU food additives regulation, via Open Food Facts.

More about calcium propionate (E282) on Wikidata

Where it turns up

Calcium propionate (E282) appears in 795 of the 40,000 products on this site (2%).

Breads 176 of 2,388 products
Wheat flatbreads 96 of 149 products
Sliced breads 69 of 389 products
Bagel breads 66 of 91 products
White breads 52 of 367 products
Wheat breads 34 of 228 products

Products containing calcium propionate (E282)

Showing the 60 most popular of 795.

How the NOVA classification works