Is Jalapeño chilli jam ultra-processed?

Jams Sold in the United Kingdom

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:

  • 12 ingredients
  • 2 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed jams

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 (processing marker), Glucose syrup (ultra-processing marker), Water, Red pepper 12%, White wine vinegar, Jalapeño chillies 2%, Thickener (ultra-processing marker) (pectins (ultra-processing marker)), Piri piri chillies, Antioxidant (citric acid), Rapeseed oil

Additives: E330 Citric acid , E440 Pectins

As written on the pack

Sugar, Glucose syrup, Water, Red pepper (12%), White wine vinegar, Jalapeño chillies (2%), Thickener (pectins), Piri piri chillies, Antioxidant (citric acid), Rapeseed oil.

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.

  • E440 Pectins Pectins are gelling agents extracted from citrus peel or apple pomace.
  • 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.
  • Glucose syrup Glucose syrup is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
1 ingredient that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 323 jams

From least to most processed, this one ranks 286th. 90% of the jams 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 323 jams, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5010525201702, 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.
  • 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.