Is Chef Boyardee Spaghetti & Meatballs ultra-processed?
Yes, it's ultra-processed
- 1 Unprocessed
- 2 Kitchen staple
- 3 Processed
- 4 Ultra-processed
Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:
- 33 ingredients
- 4 additives
- Nutri-Score C
Less processed cereals and their products
Ingredients
Ultra-processing Processing
Water, spaghetti (water, durum wheat semolina, wheat gluten (ultra-processing marker), glyceryl monostearate (ultra-processing marker)), Tomato puree, Pork, chicken, Sugars (processing marker) (sugar, glucose-fructose (ultra-processing marker)), wheat, beef, Modified corn starch (ultra-processing marker), Salt (processing marker), Soy protein, Sea salt (processing marker), Dehydrated onions, Potassium chloride, Hydrolyzed protein (corn, wheat gluten (ultra-processing marker), soy), Citric acid, Caramel, Spice extract, Ammonium chloride, Processed cheese spread, Flavour (ultra-processing marker), Yeast extract, Soybean oil (processing marker), Lactic acid
Additives: E270 Lactic acid , E330 Citric acid , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E510 Ammonium chloride
As written on the pack
Water, Cooked spaghetti (water, durum wheat semolina, wheat gluten, glyceryl monostearate), Tomato puree, Pork, Ground chicken, Sugars (sugar/glucose-fructose), Toasted wheat crumbs, Seasoned beef, Modified corn starch, Salt, Soy protein concentrate, Sea salt, Dehydrated onions, Potassium chloride, Hydrolyzed protein (corn, wheat gluten, soy), Citric acid, Caramel, Spice extract, Ammonium chloride, Processed cheese spread (milk), Flavour, Yeast extract, Soybean oil, Lactic acid.
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.
- E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
- Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
- Modified starch Modified starch is starch altered physically, with enzymes or chemically, so that it thickens, gels or survives freezing and heating better than ordinary starch.
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.
- Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
- Gluten Wheat gluten, sold as "vital wheat gluten", is the protein washed out of wheat flour.
- Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
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.
- Meals Products in the category "Meals" 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.
Among 5,066 cereals and their products
From least to most processed, this one ranks 4732nd. 57% of the cereals and their products here are ultra-processed.
About this information
- Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0064144043224, last edited 22 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 C (from A, best, to E).
- General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.