Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Birds Eye Crunchy hot & spicy chicken ultra-processed?

180g Breaded chicken Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Birds Eye Crunchy hot & spicy chicken

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:

  • 35 ingredients
  • 1 additive
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed breaded chicken

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

Chicken Breast 53%, Breadcrumbs (Fortified WHEAT Flour (wheat, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Yeast, Sugar, Salt), Rapeseed Oil, Fortified WHEAT Flour (wheat, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Salt, WHEAT Starch, Cornflour, Red Chilli Pepper, Tomato, Rice Flour, Spices, Red Pepper, Garlic, Onion, Natural Flavourings, Yeast Extract, Parsley, Spice Extracts, Colour (Paprika Extract)

Additives: E160c Paprika extract

As written on the pack

Chicken Breast (53%), Breadcrumbs (Fortified WHEAT Flour (WHEAT, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Yeast, Sugar, Salt), Rapeseed Oil, Fortified WHEAT Flour (WHEAT, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Salt, WHEAT Starch, Cornflour, Red Chilli Pepper, Tomato Powder, Rice Flour, Spices, Dried Red Pepper, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Natural Flavourings, Yeast Extract, Dried Parsley, Spice Extracts, Colour (Paprika Extract). May also contain EGG.

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.

  • E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
3 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.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 115 breaded chicken

From least to most processed, this one ranks 74th. 83% of the breaded chicken 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 115 breaded chicken, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000116111879, last edited 12 May 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 C (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.