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Is Joe's Diner Mac 'n Cheese ultra-processed?

14 oz (397 g) Microwave meals Sold in the United States

Pack of Joe's Diner Mac 'n Cheese

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:

  • 43 ingredients
  • 1 additive
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed microwave meals

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

cooked elbow macaroni (water, enriched semolina (durum wheat, semolina, niacin, ferrous sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid)), milk, cheddar cheese (cow's milk, cheese culture, salt rennet, calcium chloride), imported gouda cheese (cow's milk, cheese cultures, rennet, salts, carotene (color)), imported swiss cheese (cow's milk, cheese cultures, salt, enzymes), flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), butter (cream, salt, annatto (color)), modified rice starch, salt, spices

Additives: E160b Annatto

As written on the pack

COOKED ELBOW MACARONI (WATER, ENRICHED SEMOLINA [DURUM WHEAT, SEMOLINA, NIACIN, FERROUS SULFATE, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID]), MILK, CHEDDAR CHEESE (PASTEURIZED COW'S MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT RENNET, CALCIUM CHLORIDE), IMPORTED GOUDA CHEESE (PASTEURIZED COW'S MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, RENNET, SALTS, CAROTENE [COLOR]), IMPORTED SWISS CHEESE (PART SKIM COW'S MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES), UNBLEACHED FLOUR (UNBLEACHED WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, REDUCED IRON, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), BUTTER (PASTEURIZED CREAM, SALT, ANNATTO [COLOR]), MODIFIED RICE STARCH, SALT, SPICES

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.

  • E160b Annatto Colours are substances which add or restore colour in a food, and include natural constituents of foods and natural sources which are normally not consumed as foods as such and not normally used as characteristic ingredients of food.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • 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.
5 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.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • Butter Butter, the fat churned from cream.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 350 microwave meals

From least to most processed, this one ranks 220th. 72% of the microwave meals 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 350 microwave meals, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00036559, last edited 3 October 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 C (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.