Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Leggo's PESTO basil ultra-processed?

190 g Green pestos Sold in Australia, New Zealand and France

Pack of Leggo's PESTO basil

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:

  • 22 ingredients
  • No additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed green pestos

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

basil 34%, water, vegetable oils, canola oil, sunflower oil, pecorino cheese 9%, milk, salt, cultures, enzymes, tapioca starch, whey powder, nuts 6% (almonds, cashews), garlic 2%, salt, natural flavour, sugar, lactic, fruit fibre, vegetable fibre

As written on the pack

basil (34%), water, vegetable oils (canola oil, sunflower oil, pecorino cheese (9%) milk, salt, cultures, enzymes, tapioca starch, whey powder (milk), nuts (6%) (almonds, cashews). garlic (2%), salt, natural flavour (contains milk). sugar, food acid (lactic), fruit fibre, vegetable fibre. contains tree nuts and milk.

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.

  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.

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.
  • 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.
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.

  • 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.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 79 green pestos

From least to most processed, this one ranks 71st. 49% of the green pestos 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 79 green pestos, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 93352192, last edited 28 September 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.