Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Kraft Foods Queso in a can ultra-processed?

Cheeses Sold in the United States

Pack of Kraft Foods Queso in a can

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:

  • 23 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed cheeses

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

Water, whey, cheddar cheese (milk, salt, cheese culture, enzymes), canola oil, whey protein, milk protein concentrate, contains less than 2% of milk, sodium citrate, sodium phosphate, calcium phosphate, salt, lactic acid, sodium alginate, sorbic acid as a preservative, color (annatto, apocarotenal), enzymes, cheese culture

Additives: E160e Beta-apo-8′-carotenal (c30) , E270 Lactic acid , E331 Sodium citrates , E401 Sodium alginate

As written on the pack

Water, whey, cheddar cheese (milk, salt, cheese culture, enzymes), canola oil, whey protein concentrate, milk protein concentrate, contains less than 2% of milk, sodium citrate, sodium phosphate, calcium phosphate, salt, lactic acid, sodium alginate, sorbic acid as a preservative, color (annatto extract, apocarotenal), enzymes, cheese culture.

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.

  • E160e Beta-apo-8′-carotenal (c30) 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.
  • E401 Sodium alginate A food additive used to dissolve, dilute, disperse or otherwise physically modify a food additive or nutrient without altering its function -and without exerting any technological effect itself- in order to facilitate its handling, application or use of the food additive or nutrient.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.

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.

  • Milk proteins Milk proteins are proteins separated from milk, such as caseinates and whey protein concentrates, added to adjust texture or raise protein content.
  • Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
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.

  • Cheeses Products in the category "Cheeses" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 1,224 cheeses

From least to most processed, this one ranks 1134th. 38% of the cheeses 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 1,224 cheeses, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0044000045524, last edited 1 August 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.