Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Coca-Cola Dr Pepper ultra-processed?

330 ml Carbonated soft drinks without fruit juice Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Coca-Cola Dr Pepper

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:

  • 12 ingredients
  • 5 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed carbonated drinks

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

Carbonated Water, Sugar, Colour (e150d), Acid (Phosphoric Acid), Sweeteners, Aspartame, Acesulfame K, Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Flavourings Including Caffeine

Additives: E150d Sulphite ammonia caramel , E202 Potassium sorbate , E338 Phosphoric acid , E950 Acesulfame k , E951 Aspartame

As written on the pack

Carbonated Water, Sugar, Colour (Caramel E150d). Acid (Phosphoric Acid), Sweeteners (Aspartame, Acesulfame K. Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Flavourings Including Caffeine Contains a Source of Phenylalanine.

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.

  • E150d Sulphite ammonia caramel Sulphite ammonia caramel is the dark brown colour in colas and many sauces, made by heating sugars with sulphite and ammonia compounds.
  • E950 Acesulfame k Acesulfame K is a synthetic sweetener about 200 times sweeter than sugar, often combined with aspartame or sucralose.
  • E951 Aspartame Aspartame is a synthetic sweetener about 200 times sweeter than sugar, used in diet drinks and sugar-free products.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Sweetener Sweeteners give sweetness with few or no calories, many at hundreds of times the strength of sugar.
4 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.

  • E202 Potassium sorbate Preservatives are substances which prolong the shelf-life of foods by protecting them against deterioration caused by micro-organisms and/or which protect against growth of pathogenic micro-organisms.
  • Sodas Products in the category "Sodas" are at least group 3.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 14 carbonated soft drinks without fruit juice

From least to most processed, this one ranks 8th. 93% of the carbonated soft drinks without fruit juice 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 14 carbonated soft drinks without fruit juice, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000112673876, 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 D (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.