Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Beehive Shoulder Bacon ultra-processed?

200 g Bacon Sold in New Zealand

Pack of Beehive Shoulder Bacon

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:

  • 13 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed bacon

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

pork 88%, water, salt, stabilisers (450, 451), sugar, antioxidant (316), honey, preservative (250), wood smoke

Additives: E250 Sodium nitrite , E316 Sodium erythorbate , E450 Diphosphates , E451 Triphosphates

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: E450 Diphosphates, E451 Triphosphates, E250 Sodium nitrite.

As written on the pack

pork (88%), water, salt, stabilisers (450, 451), sugar, antioxidant (316), honey, preservative (250), wood smoke

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.

  • E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.
  • E451 Triphosphates Emulsifiers are substances which make it possible to form or maintain a homogenous mixture of two or more immiscible phases such as oil and water in a foodstuff.
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.

  • E250 Sodium nitrite 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.
  • Honey Honey, used as a sweetener.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 109 bacon

From least to most processed, this one ranks 100th. 36% of the bacon 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 109 bacon, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 9416444009188, last edited 5 October 2025), 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 D (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.