Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Emergen-C Vitamin C ultra-processed?

Dietary supplements Sold in the United States

Pack of Emergen-C Vitamin C

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:

  • 24 ingredients
  • 6 additives

Less processed dietary supplements

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

Sugar, Fructose, Citric Acid, Maltodextrin, Contains <2% of (Acacia), Beet Juice Concentrate (color), Caramel Color, Fruit Juice Concentrates (blackberry, raspberry, cherry, color (and flavor)), Glycine, L-Aspartic Acid, Malic Acid, Natural Flavors, Rebaudioside A (extracted and purified from natural stevia leaf), Silicon Dioxide, Tartaric Acid, O Caffeine-Free Gluten-Free Natural Sweeteners and Flavors Naturally-Sourced Colors Keep out of reach of children

Additives: E150c Ammonia caramel , E296 Malic acid , E330 Citric acid , E334 L(+)-tartaric acid , E640 Glycine and its sodium salt , E640i Glycine

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

As written on the pack

Sugar, Fructose, Citric Acid, Maltodextrin. Contains &lt;2% of: Acacia, Beet Juice Concentrate (color), Caramel Color, Fruit Juice Concentrates (blackberry, raspberry, cherry) (color and flavor), Glycine, L-Aspartic Acid, Malic Acid, Natural Flavors, Rebaudioside A (extracted and purified from natural stevia leaf), Silicon Dioxide, Tartaric Acid. O Caffeine-Free Gluten-Free Vegetarian Natural Sweeteners & Flavors Naturally-Sourced Colors Keep out of reach of children.

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.
  • E640 Glycine and its sodium salt A food additive authorised for industrial food production.
  • 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.
  • Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
  • Fruit juice concentrate An ingredient mostly produced industrially and rarely used in home kitchens.
1 ingredient that would only make it processed

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

  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 1,145 dietary supplements

From least to most processed, this one ranks 873rd. 90% of the dietary supplements 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 1,145 dietary supplements, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0076314302017, last edited 9 July 2025), 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.