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Is Food Box Italian Meatballs ultra-processed?

400 g Meals with meat Sold in Sweden

Pack of Food Box Italian Meatballs

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:

  • 57 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score B

Less processed meals with meat

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

Tomato, quinoa, soy beans, beef 11%, zuccini, Grana Padano (milk, salt, rennet, preservative (e1105 (from EGGS))), red grilled pepper, spinach, breadcrumbs (wheat flour, sea salt, yeast, durum wheat flour, wheat gluten), mushrooms, fried onion (fried in rapeseed oil), onion, eggs, parsley, water, kale, white wine (preservative (e220)), tomato puree, cheese, spices (onion, oregano, tomato, garlic, black pepper), chicken stock (water, chicken salt), mustard, water, mustard seeds, vinegar, salt, acidity regulator (e330), preservative (e224), garlic, lemon zest, green chili, dried tomato, salt, rice starch

Additives: E1105 Lysozyme , E220 Sulphur dioxide , E224 Potassium metabisulphite , E330 Citric acid

As written on the pack

Tomato, quinoa, SOY BEANS, beef* (11%), zuccini, Grana Padano (MILK, salt, rennet, preservative E1105 (from EGGS)), red grilled pepper, spinach, breadcrumbs (WHEAT FLOUR, sea salt, yeast, DURUM WHEAT FLOUR, WHEAT GLUTEN) , mushrooms, fried onion (fried in rapeseed oil), onion, EGGS, parsley, water, kale, white wine (preservative E220), tomato puree, CHEESE, spices (onion, oregano, tomato, garlic, black pepper), chicken stock (water, chicken salt), MUSTARD (water, MUSTARD SEEDS, vinegar, salt, acidity regulator E330, preservative E224, garlic, lemon zest, green chili, dried tomato, salt, rice starch. *Origin: EU

What makes it ultra-processed

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.

  • Gluten Wheat gluten, sold as "vital wheat gluten", is the protein washed out of wheat flour.
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.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 482 meals with meat

From least to most processed, this one ranks 209th. 77% of the meals with meat 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 482 meals with meat, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 7310960044987, last edited 2 April 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 B (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.