Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Gain Bar (Lidl) Peanut Butter Gain Bar ultra-processed?

64 g Protein Energy Bars Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Gain Bar (Lidl) Peanut Butter Gain Bar

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:

  • 52 ingredients
  • 9 additives

Less processed protein Energy Bars

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

ft N rl Win Alt, LOW SUGAR CHICIS V LE Chocolate peanut flavoured protein bar with sweeteners gredients Protein Blend (Mick Protein Isolate, Hydrolysed Wheat Protein, Soya Protein Isolate, Whey Protein Isolate (Milk, Emulsifier (Sunflower cithins))), Couverture Milk Chocolate with Sweetener (Sweetener (Maltitol), Cocoa Butter, Whole Milk Powder, Cocoa Mass, Emulsifier (Soya Lecithins), Ma Vanilla Flavouring), Humectant (Glycero), Caramel Flavour Filling (Humectant (Glycerol), Maltodextrin, Oligofructose, Bulking Agent, Maltitol Coconut Oil, Skimmed Milk Powder, Modified Maize Starch, Water, Colour (Plain Caramel), Gelling Agent (Pectins), Stabiliser (Calcium Lactate), Elsifier (Rapeseed Lecithins), Natural Flavourings, Salt, Thickener (Xanthan Gum)), Soluble Tapioca Fibre, Sweeteners (Maltitol Syrup), Sucralose, Water, Peanuts 4%, Flavouring, Salt, Natural Flavouring, Couverture

Additives: E150a Plain caramel , E322 Lecithins , E327 Calcium lactate , E415 Xanthan gum , E422 Glycerol , E440 Pectins , E955 Sucralose , E965 Maltitol , E965ii Maltitol syrup

As written on the pack

ft N rl Win Alt - LOW SUGAR CHICIS V VEGETARIAN LE Chocolate peanut flavoured protein bar with sweeteners gredients Protein Blend (Mick Protein Isolate, Hydrolysed Wheat Protein, Soya Protein Isolate, Whey Protein Isolate (Milk, Emulsifier: Sunflower cithins)), Couverture Milk Chocolate with Sweetener (Sweetener: Maltitol; Cocoa Butter, Whole Milk Powder, Cocoa Mass, Emulsifier: Soya Lecithins, Ma Vanilla Flavouring), Humectant: Glycero, Caramel Flavour Filling (Humectant: Glycerol; Maltodextrin, Oligofructose, Bulking Agent. Maltitol Coconut Oil, Skimmed Milk Powder, Modified Maize Starch, Water, Colour: Plain Caramel; Gelling Agent: Pectins; Stabiliser: Calcium Lactate; Elsifier: Rapeseed Lecithins; Natural Flavourings, Salt, Thickener: Xanthan Gum), Soluble Tapioca Fibre, Sweeteners: Maltitol Syrup, Sucralose; Water, 4% Nibbed Peanuts, Flavouring, Salt, Natural Flavouring. Couverture

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.

  • E150a Plain caramel Plain caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars.
  • E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
  • E327 Calcium lactate Thickeners are substances which increase the viscosity of a foodstuff.
  • E415 Xanthan gum Xanthan gum is a thickener made by fermenting sugar with the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris.
  • E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
  • E440 Pectins Pectins are gelling agents extracted from citrus peel or apple pomace.
Show 11 more
  • E955 Sucralose Sucralose is a sweetener made by chlorinating sugar.
  • E965 Maltitol Maltitol is a sugar alcohol made from starch, used as a sweetener in "no added sugar" sweets and chocolate.
  • Bulking agent Bulking agents are substances which contribute to the volume of a foodstuff without contributing significantly to its available energy value.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
  • Gelling agent Gelling agents such as pectin, gelatine or carrageenan set liquids into gels and stabilise textures.
  • Humectant Humectants are substances which prevent foods from drying out by counteracting the effect of an atmosphere having a low degree of humidity, or promote the dissolution of a powder in an aqueous medium.
  • Sweetener Sweeteners give sweetness with few or no calories, many at hundreds of times the strength of sugar.
  • Thickener Thickeners, often gums or modified starches, make liquids more viscous so that a product feels richer than its ingredients alone would make it.
  • Modified starch Modified starch is starch altered physically, with enzymes or chemically, so that it thickens, gels or survives freezing and heating better than ordinary starch.

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.
  • Milk proteins Milk proteins are proteins separated from milk, such as caseinates and whey protein concentrates, added to adjust texture or raise protein content.
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.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.
  • Milk powder Milk powder is milk with the water evaporated off: a preserved form of a whole food rather than an industrial extract.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 69 protein Energy Bars

From least to most processed, this one ranks 67th. 94% of the protein Energy Bars 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 69 protein Energy Bars, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 4335619125414, last edited 1 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.