Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Great Value Apple Cinnamon Fruit & Grain Cereal Bars ultra-processed?

Cereal bars Sold in the United States

Pack of Great Value Apple Cinnamon Fruit & Grain Cereal Bars

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:

  • 64 ingredients
  • 10 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed cereal 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

Apple filling (invert sugar, corn syrup, apple puree (apple puree, ascorbic acid (for color retention)), sugar, glycerin, modified corn starch, sodium alginate, methylcellulose, malic acid, monocalcium phosphate, cinnamon, dicalcium phosphate, citric acid, apple juice (for color)), rolled oats, wheat flour, enriched wheat flour (wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), vegetable shortening (canola oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil), invert sugar, sugar, glycerin, contains less than 2% of (whey), corn syrup solids, calcium carbonate, honey, wheat bran, salt, potassium bicarbonate, sorbitan monostearate, vital wheat gluten, cinnamon, corn starch, xanthan gum, vitamin a palmitate, reduced iron, thiamine hydrochloride (vitamin b1), riboflavin, niacin (niacinamide), pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin b6), folic acid, cyanocobalamin, zinc oxide, dicalcium phosphate, natural flavors, molasses

Additives: E296 Malic acid , E330 Citric acid , E341 Calcium phosphates , E341i Monocalcium phosphate , E341ii Dicalcium phosphate , E401 Sodium alginate , E415 Xanthan gum , E422 Glycerol , E461 Methyl cellulose , E491 Sorbitan monostearate

As written on the pack

Apple filling (invert sugar, corn syrup, apple puree concentrate [apple puree, ascorbic acid {for color retention}], sugar, glycerin, modified corn starch, sodium alginate, methylcellulose, malic acid, monocalcium phosphate, ground cinnamon, dicalcium phosphate, citric acid, apple juice [for color]), whole grain rolled oats, whole grain wheat flour, enriched wheat flour (bleached wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), vegetable shortening (canola oil, palm oil, palm kernel oil), invert sugar, sugar, glycerin, contains less than 2% of: whey, corn syrup solids, calcium carbonate, honey, wheat bran, salt, potassium bicarbonate, sorbitan monostearate, vital wheat gluten, ground cinnamon, corn starch, xanthan gum, vitamin a palmitate, reduced iron, thiamine hydrochloride (vitamin b1), riboflavin (vitamin b2), niacin (niacinamide), pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin b6), folic acid, cyanocobalamin (vitamin b12), zinc oxide, dicalcium phosphate, natural flavors, molasses.

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.

  • E401 Sodium alginate A food additive used to dissolve, dilute, disperse or otherwise physically modify a food additive or nutrient without altering its function -and without exerting any technological effect itself- in order to facilitate its handling, application or use of the food additive or nutrient.
  • 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.
  • E461 Methyl cellulose Emulsifiers are substances which make it possible to form or maintain a homogenous mixture of two or more immiscible phases such as oil and water in a foodstuff.
  • E491 Sorbitan monostearate Emulsifiers are substances which make it possible to form or maintain a homogenous mixture of two or more immiscible phases such as oil and water in a foodstuff.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
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  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
  • 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.

  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Gluten Wheat gluten, sold as "vital wheat gluten", is the protein washed out of wheat flour.
  • Invert sugar Invert sugar is ordinary sugar split into glucose and fructose with acid or enzymes.
  • Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
6 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.

  • Honey Honey, used as a sweetener.
  • 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 fat Vegetable fats are oils that are solid at room temperature, such as palm or coconut fat.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 487 cereal bars

From least to most processed, this one ranks 463rd. 91% of the cereal 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 487 cereal bars, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0078742229157, last edited 20 September 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.