Is Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing ultra-processed?

16 fl oz (473 mL) Salad dressings Sold in the United States

Pack of Kraft Zesty Italian Dressing

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:

  • 17 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed salad dressings

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

Vinegar, Water, Blend Of Vegetable Oils (Soybean Oil (processing marker), Canola Oil), Sugar (processing marker), Salt (processing marker), Garlic, Contains Less Than 2% Of Red Bell Peppers, Onions, Xanthan Gum (ultra-processing marker), Spice, Oleoresin Paprika (ultra-processing marker) (Color (ultra-processing marker)), Potassium Sorbate (processing marker), Calcium Disodium EDTA (To Protect Flavor (processing marker))

Additives: E160c Paprika extract , E202 Potassium sorbate , E385 Calcium disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate , E415 Xanthan gum

As written on the pack

Vinegar, Water, Blend Of Vegetable Oils (Soybean Oil, Canola Oil), Sugar, Salt, Garlic, Contains Less Than 2% Of Red Bell Peppers, Onions, Xanthan Gum, Spice, Oleoresin Paprika (Color), Potassium Sorbate And Calcium Disodium EDTA (To Protect Flavor)

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.

  • E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.
  • E415 Xanthan gum Xanthan gum is a thickener made by fermenting sugar with the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
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.

  • E202 Potassium sorbate Preservatives are substances which prolong the shelf-life of foods by protecting them against deterioration caused by micro-organisms and/or which protect against growth of pathogenic micro-organisms.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • 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 252 salad dressings

From least to most processed, this one ranks 160th. 85% of the salad dressings 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 252 salad dressings, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0021000644254, last edited 27 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.