Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Hershey's Special Dark ultra-processed?

4.25 oz (120 g) Milk chocolate bar Sold in the United States, Bolivia and France

Pack of Hershey's Special Dark

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:

  • 8 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed milk chocolate bar

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, chocolate, cocoa butter, milk fat, cocoa processed with alkali, lecithin, pgpr, natural flavor

Additives: E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate

As written on the pack

SUGAR, CHOCOLATE, COCOA BUTTER, MILK FAT, COCOA PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, LECITHIN (SOY), PGPR, NATURAL FLAVOR.

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.

  • 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.
  • E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate Polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR) is an emulsifier made from castor oil.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
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.

  • Chocolates Products in the category "Chocolates" are at least group 3.
  • 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 36 milk chocolate bar

From least to most processed, this one ranks 20th. 89% of the milk chocolate bar 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 36 milk chocolate bar, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0034000174140, last edited 6 May 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 E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.