Is corned beef ultra-processed?

Corned beef Sold in the United Kingdom

It's processed, but not ultra-processed

Whole foods combined with:

Less processed isn't automatically healthier, so compare the labels for what matters to you, such as sugar or salt.

Ultra-processing Processing signs are highlighted

cooked beef 95%, beef 3%, salt (processing marker), sodium nitrite (processing marker)

Additives: E250 Sodium nitrite

As written on the pack

cooked beef (95%), beef (3%), salt, preservative: sodium nitrite.

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

Keep food safe or ferment it, like preservatives and cultures. A sign of processing, not ultra-processing.

E250 Sodium nitrite 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.

Open Food Facts puts every product in this category in at least this group.

Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
Prepared meats Products in the category "Prepared meats" are at least group 3.

From least to most processed, this one ranks 6th. 6% of the corned beef 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.

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5010259196510, last edited 19 August 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.