Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Irwins Fruit Loaf ultra-processed?

400g Breads Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Irwins Fruit Loaf

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:

  • 40 ingredients
  • 8 additives

Less processed breads

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

Sultanas 32%, Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Mixed Peel 4% (Orange Peel, Glue-fructose syrup, Sugar, Lemon Peel, Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid)), Rapeseed Oil, Glace Cherries 3% (Cherries, Glucose-fructose syrup, Sugar, Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid), Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Colour (Erythrosine)), Invert Sugar Syrup, Dextro Yeast, Salt, Emulsifiers (mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids, Sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate), Wheat Gluten, Soya Flour, Thickeners (Sodium carboxy methyl cellulose, Xanthan gum), Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic Acid), including cereals containing gluten

Additives: E127 Erythrosine , E202 Potassium sorbate , E300 Ascorbic acid , E330 Citric acid , E415 Xanthan gum , E466 Sodium carboxy methyl cellulose , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E481 Sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate

As written on the pack

Sultanas (32%), Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Mixed Peel (4%) (Orange Peel, Glue-fructose syrup, Sugar, Lemon Peel, Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid)), Rapeseed Oil, Glace Cherries (3%) (Cherries, Glucose-fructose syrup, Sugar, Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid), Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Colour (Erythrosine)), Invert Sugar Syrup, Dextro Yeast, Salt, Emulsifiers (Mono - and diglycerides of fatty acids, Sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate), Wheat Gluten, Soya Flour, Thickeners (Sodium carboxy methyl cellulose, Xanthan gum), Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic Acid). ALLERGY ADVICE: For allergens, including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients in bold. Suitable for vegetarians.

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.

  • E127 Erythrosine Erythrosine is a synthetic red dye (FD&C Red No. 3 in the US).
  • E415 Xanthan gum Xanthan gum is a thickener made by fermenting sugar with the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris.
  • E466 Sodium carboxy methyl cellulose Carboxymethyl cellulose is a thickener made by chemically modifying cellulose from wood or cotton.
  • E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
  • E481 Sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate 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.
Show 2 more
  • Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
  • Thickener Thickeners, often gums or modified starches, make liquids more viscous so that a product feels richer than its ingredients alone would make it.

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.
  • Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
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.

  • E202 Potassium sorbate Preservatives are substances which prolong the shelf-life of foods by protecting them against deterioration caused by micro-organisms and/or which protect against growth of pathogenic micro-organisms.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 2,388 breads

From least to most processed, this one ranks 2378th. 71% of the breads 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 2,388 breads, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5013427011790, last edited 27 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.