Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Cheetos Puffs ultra-processed?

7/8 oz (24.8g) Puffed salty snacks Sold in the United States and France

Pack of Cheetos Puffs

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:

  • 31 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed puffed salty snacks

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

corn meal (corn meal, ferrous sulfate, niacin, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), vegetable oil (corn, canola, and sunflower oil), cheese seasoning (whey, cheddlar cheese (milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes), canola oil, maltodextrin (made from corn), natural and artificial flavors, salt, whey protein, monosodium glutamate, lactic acid, citric acid, artificial color, yellow 61), and salt, ingredients

Additives: E270 Lactic acid , E330 Citric acid , E621 Monosodium glutamate

As written on the pack

enriched corn meal (corn meal, ferrous sulfate, niacin, thiamin mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), vegetable oil (corn, canola, and/or sunflower oil), cheese seasoning (whey, cheddlar cheese [milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes], canola oil, maltodextrin [made from corn], natural and artificial flavors, salt, whey protein concentrate, monosodium glutamate, lactic acid, citric acid, artificial color [yellow 61), and salt, contains milk ingredients,

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.

  • E621 Monosodium glutamate Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of glutamic acid, made by fermentation and used to strengthen savoury taste.
  • 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.

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.

  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
  • Milk proteins Milk proteins are proteins separated from milk, such as caseinates and whey protein concentrates, added to adjust texture or raise protein content.
  • Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
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.

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

How the NOVA groups work

Among 90 puffed salty snacks

From least to most processed, this one ranks 78th. 77% of the puffed salty snacks 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 90 puffed salty snacks, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0028400002561, last edited 7 June 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.