Is it ultra-processed?
Menu

Is Catalina Crunch Creamy Ranch Protein Snack Mix ultra-processed?

6 oz Appetizers Sold in the United States

Pack of Catalina Crunch Creamy Ranch Protein Snack Mix

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:

  • 46 ingredients
  • 12 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed appetizers

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

pea protein, tapioca starch, potato fiber, corn fiber, milk fiber, guar gum, baking soda, calcium carbonate, caramel color, monocalcium phosphate, yeast extract, salt, soy protein wheels (soy protein isolate, rice flour, oat fiber, chicory root fiber), roasted almonds (almonds, canola oil), cashews (cashews, canola oil), seasoning (sweet cream powder, salt, nonfat milk, garlic powder, distilled vinegar, lactic acid), sunflower oil, chickpea (chickpea flour, potato flour, cornstarch, rice flour, tapioca starch, sea salt, cane sugar, high oleic sunflower oil, pea protein, sunflower lecithin, xanthan gum, yeast, citric acid, mixed tocopherols)

Additives: E150c Ammonia caramel , E270 Lactic acid , E306 Tocopherol-rich extract , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E330 Citric acid , E341 Calcium phosphates , E341i Monocalcium phosphate , E412 Guar gum , E415 Xanthan gum , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500ii Sodium hydrogen carbonate

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: E150c Ammonia caramel.

As written on the pack

pea protein, tapioca starch, potato fiber, corn fiber, milk fiber, guar gum, baking soda, calcium carbonate, caramel color, monocalcium phosphate, yeast extract, salt, soy protein wheels (soy protein isolate, rice flour, oat fiber, chicory root fiber), roasted almonds (almonds, canola oil), roasted cashews (cashews, canola oil), seasoning (sweet cream powder, salt, nonfat milk, garlic powder, distilled vinegar, lactic acid), sunflower oil, chickpea pieces (chickpea flour, potato flour, cornstarch, rice flour, tapioca starch, sea salt, cane sugar, high oleic sunflower oil, pea protein, sunflower lecithin, xanthan gum, yeast, citric acid, mixed tocopherols)

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.

  • E150c Ammonia caramel Ammonia caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars with ammonia compounds.
  • 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.
  • E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
  • E415 Xanthan gum Xanthan gum is a thickener made by fermenting sugar with the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris.

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.
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.

  • Salty snacks Products in the category "Salty snacks" are at least group 3.
  • 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.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 2,497 appetizers

From least to most processed, this one ranks 2149th. 64% of the appetizers 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 2,497 appetizers, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0850017468146, last edited 7 September 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 D (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.