Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Kroger Mac and Cheese Original Macaroni & Cheese ultra-processed?

Macaroni and cheese Sold in the United States

Pack of Kroger Mac and Cheese Original Macaroni & 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:

  • 27 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score A

Less processed macaroni and cheese

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

Enriched Macaroni Product (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Cheddar Cheese Sauce (Whey, Dairy Product, Salt, Cheddar Cheese (Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes), Modified Corn Starch, Contains 2% and Less of the Following (Color Added, Beet Juice, Annatto, Beta Carotene, Turmeric Oleoresin), Citric Acid, Disodium Phosphate, Latic Acid)

Additives: E160a Carotene , E160ai Beta-carotene , E330 Citric acid , E339ii Disodium phosphate

As written on the pack

Enriched Macaroni Product (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Cheddar Cheese Sauce (Whey, Dairy Product Solids, Salt, Cheddar Cheese [Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes], Modified Corn Starch, Contains 2% or Less of the Following: Color Added [Beet Juice, Annatto Extract, Beta Carotene, Turmeric Oleoresin], Citric Acid, Disodium Phosphate, Latic Acid).

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.

  • E160a Carotene Carotenes are orange-yellow pigments, either synthesised or extracted from carrots, algae or palm oil.
  • 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.

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.

  • 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.
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.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • 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 48 macaroni and cheese

From least to most processed, this one ranks 32nd. 94% of the macaroni and cheese 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 48 macaroni and cheese, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0011110100115, last edited 10 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.