Is John West Super tuna salad ultra-processed?

220g Tuna salads Sold in the United Kingdom

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Flavouring
Thickener
E412 Guar gum

20 ingredients
1 additive
Nutri-Score A

Less processed tuna salads

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

Bulgur Wheat 26%, Skipjack Tuna, Onions, Lentils 10%, Soya Beans 5.6%, Green Peas 5.6%, Virgin Olive Oil (processing marker), Rapeseed Oil, Yellow Split Peas 2.5%, Pumpkin Seeds 1.8%, Spirit Vinegar, Shallots, Basil 0.9%, Lemon Zest, Salt (processing marker), Garlic, Natural Flavouring (ultra-processing marker), Thickener (ultra-processing marker) (Guar Gum (ultra-processing marker)), Black Pepper

Additives: E412 Guar gum

As written on the pack

Cooked Bulgur Wheat (26%), Skipjack Tuna (Fish) (18%), Onions, Lentils (10%), Soya Beans (5.6%), Green Peas (5.6%), Virgin Olive Oil, Rapeseed Oil, Yellow Split Peas (2.5%), Pumpkin Seeds (1.8%), Spirit Vinegar, Shallots, Basil (0.9%), Lemon Zest, Salt, Garlic, Natural Flavouring, Thickener: Guar Gum, Black Pepper.

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.

E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
Thickener Thickeners, often gums or modified starches, make liquids more viscous so that a product feels richer than its ingredients alone would make it.

3 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.
Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 14 tuna salads

From least to most processed, this one ranks 8th. 71% of the tuna salads 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 14 tuna salads, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000171060044, 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.
NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of A (from A, best, to E).
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.