Is it ultra-processed?
Menu

Is Arnott's Tim Tam Dark ultra-processed?

200 g Chocolate biscuits Sold in Australia, New Zealand and France

Pack of Arnott's Tim Tam Dark

Yes, it's ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

  • 24 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed chocolate biscuits

Less processed isn't automatically healthier, so compare the labels for what matters to you, such as sugar or salt.

Ingredients

Ultra-processing Processing signs are highlighted

biscuits (Dark Chocolate 38%, Sugar), Cocoa Mass, Milk, Vegetable Oil, Cocoa Butter, Soy Lecithin, e476, Flavour, Wheat Flour, Sugar, Vegetable Oil, Golden Syrup, Cocon Powder, Food Colour (Caramel), Salt, Baking Powder, Soy Lecithin, Flavour, containing cereals, milk, SOY

Additives: E150 Caramel , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate

As written on the pack

BISCUITS: Dark Chocolate (38%){Sugar, Cocoa Mass, Milk Solids, Vegetable Oil, Cocoa Butter, Emulsifiers (Soy Lecithin, E476), Flavour), Wheat Flour, Sugar, Vegetable Oil (Contains Soy), Golden Syrup, Cocon Powder, Food Colour (Caramel ), Salt, Baking Powder, Emulsifier (Soy Lecithin), Flavour. CONTAINS GLUTEN CONTAINING CEREALS, MILK AND SOY. MAY CONTAIN TRACES OF EGG, PEANUT, SESAME AND TREE NUT.

What makes it ultra-processed

Cosmetic additives

Added to change how the food looks, feels or tastes, not to keep it safe. A hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • E150 Caramel A food additive authorised for industrial food production.
  • E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
  • E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate Polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR) is an emulsifier made from castor oil.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.

Substances rarely used in home kitchens

Refined or extracted in factories, such as syrups made from starch or isolated proteins. The other hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • Invert sugar Invert sugar is ordinary sugar split into glucose and fructose with acid or enzymes.
5 ingredients that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Vegetable fat Vegetable fats are oils that are solid at room temperature, such as palm or coconut fat.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 301 chocolate biscuits

From least to most processed, this one ranks 125th. 95% of the chocolate biscuits here are ultra-processed.

Ranked by NOVA group, then by the number of ultra-processing signs, additives and ingredients. Our ordering, not part of NOVA.

All 301 chocolate biscuits, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 9310072012599, last edited 7 August 2026), available under the Open Database License. If something is wrong or the recipe has changed, you can correct it there.
  • Photo: Open Food Facts contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0.
  • The NOVA group is an automated estimate from crowdsourced data: a missing or mistyped ingredient can change it.
  • NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.