Is BirdsEye Meat Free Burgers ultra-processed?

200 g Vegetarian patties Sold in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Netherlands

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Flavouring
Vegetable fiber
E461 Methyl cellulose

21 ingredients
2 additives
Nutri-Score A

Less processed vegetarian patties

Vantastic Big Steaks Aus Soja Vantastic foods 1 ingredient · no additives NOVA group 1
Veggie Fingers Higgidy-Family-Kitchen 29 ingredients · no additives NOVA group 3
Tesco Plant Chef 4 Spicy Bean Burgers Tesco 27 ingredients · no additives NOVA group 3
Plant Chef 4 Veg Burger Tesco plant chef 23 ingredients · no additives NOVA group 3

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

Rehydrated Pea Protein 60%, Rapeseed Oil, Onion, Bamboo Fibre (ultra-processing marker), Pea Flour, Spirit Vinegar, Stabiliser (Methylcellulose (ultra-processing marker)), Natural Flavourings (ultra-processing marker), BARLEY Malt Extract, Tomato Paste, Salt (processing marker), Pea Fibre (ultra-processing marker), OAT Flour, Potato Starch (processing marker), Mushroom Powder, Tomato, Onion, Antioxidant (Extract of Rosemary), Herbs

Additives: E392 Extracts of rosemary , E461 Methyl cellulose

As written on the pack

Rehydrated Pea Protein (60%), Rapeseed Oil, Onion, Bamboo Fibre, Pea Flour, Spirit Vinegar, Stabiliser (Methylcellulose), Natural Flavourings, BARLEY Malt Extract, Tomato Paste, Salt, Pea Fibre, Wholegrain OAT Flour, Potato Starch, Mushroom Powder, Tomato Powder, Onion Powder, Antioxidant (Extract of Rosemary), Herbs.

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.

E461 Methyl cellulose 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.
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.

Vegetable fiber Isolated plant fibres, such as inulin, oat fibre or bamboo fibre, are extracted industrially and added to change texture or support "source of fibre" claims.

2 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.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 59 vegetarian patties

From least to most processed, this one ranks 29th. 78% of the vegetarian patties 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 59 vegetarian patties, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000116124718, last edited 27 March 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 A (from A, best, to E).
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.