Is Kellogg's Apple Jacks ultra-processed?

8.9 oz Breakfast cereals rich in fibre fortified with vitamins and chemical elements Sold in the United States

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Colour
Flavouring
Modified starch
Vegetable fiber
Coconut oil
E110 Sunset yellow FCF
and 2 more

26 ingredients
3 additives
Nutri-Score D

Less processed breakfast cereals rich in fibre fortified with vitamins and chemical elements

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

Corn flour blend (yellow corn flour, degerminated yellow corn flour), sugar (processing marker), wheat flour, oat flour, modified food starch (ultra-processing marker), soluble corn fiber (ultra-processing marker), contains 2% and less of (oat fiber (ultra-processing marker)), salt (processing marker), apple juice, vegetable oil (processing marker) (coconut (ultra-processing marker), soybean, cottonseed), cinnamon, natural flavor (ultra-processing marker), soluble wheat fiber, color added (ultra-processing marker), annatto extract for color, turmeric for color, red 40 (ultra-processing marker), yellow 6 (ultra-processing marker), blue 1 (ultra-processing marker), BHT for freshness

Additives: E110 Sunset yellow FCF , E129 Allura red , E133 Brilliant blue FCF

As written on the pack

Corn flour blend (whole grain yellow corn flour, degerminated yellow corn flour), sugar, wheat flour, whole grain oat flour, modified food starch, soluble corn fiber, contains 2% or less of: oat fiber, salt, apple juice concentrate, vegetable oil (hydrogenated coconut, soybean and/or cottonseed), cinnamon, natural flavor, soluble wheat fiber, color added, annatto extract for color, turmeric extract for color, red 40, yellow 6, blue 1, BHT for freshness.

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.

E110 Sunset yellow FCF Sunset yellow FCF is a synthetic orange azo dye (FD&C Yellow No. 6 in the US).
E129 Allura red Allura red AC is a synthetic red azo dye (FD&C Red No. 40 in the US).
E133 Brilliant blue FCF Brilliant blue FCF is a synthetic blue dye, listed in the US as FD&C Blue No. 1.
Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
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.

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.

Vegetable fiber Isolated plant fibres, such as inulin, oat fibre or bamboo fibre, are extracted industrially and added to change texture or support "source of fibre" claims.
Coconut oil An ingredient mostly produced industrially and rarely used in home kitchens.

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.

Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 17 breakfast cereals rich in fibre fortified with vitamins and chemical elements

From least to most processed, this one ranks 17th. 71% of the breakfast cereals rich in fibre fortified with vitamins and chemical elements 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 17 breakfast cereals rich in fibre fortified with vitamins and chemical elements, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0041192100376, last edited 29 June 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 D (from A, best, to E).
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.