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Is Cookies & Crème Cheerios Protein ultra-processed?

37 g Breakfast cereals fortified with vitamins and chemical elements Sold in the United States

Pack of Cookies & Crème Cheerios Protein

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:

  • 30 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed breakfast cereals fortified with vitamins and chemical elements

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

Oats, Sugar, Pea Protein, Corn Starch, Corn Syrup, Canola Oil, Sunflower Oil, Salt, Caramel Color, Tripotassium Phosphate, Natural Flavor, Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols), Calcium Carbonate, Vitamin C (sodium ascorbate), Iron, Zinc, Niacinamide, Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamins, vitamin B, Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Thiamin Mononitrate, Vitamin A (palmitate), Vitamin B12, Vitamin D3

Additives: E150c Ammonia caramel , E306 Tocopherol-rich extract , E340 Potassium phosphates , E340iii Tripotassium phosphate

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

As written on the pack

Whole Grain Oats, Sugar, Pea Protein, Corn Starch, Corn Syrup, Canola Oil, Sunflower Oil, Salt, Caramel Color, Tripotassium Phosphate, Natural Flavor, Vitamin E (mixed tocopherols), Calcium Carbonate, Vitamin C (sodium ascorbate), Iron, Zinc, Niacinamide, Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), Vitamin B, Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Folic Acid, Thiamin Mononitrate, Vitamin A (palmitate), Vitamin B12, Vitamin D3.

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.
  • 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.

  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
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.

  • 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 38 breakfast cereals fortified with vitamins and chemical elements

From least to most processed, this one ranks 28th. 71% of the breakfast cereals fortified with vitamins and chemical elements 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 38 breakfast cereals fortified with vitamins and chemical elements, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0016000229976, last edited 20 July 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.