Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Lidl 6 All butter Mince pies ultra-processed?

Shelf-stable sweet pies Sold in the United Kingdom and Spain

Pack of Lidl 6 All butter Mince pies

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:

  • 54 ingredients
  • 8 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed sweet pies

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

mincemeat 50% (sugar, sultanas 28%, bramley apple, currants 4%, brandy 3.9%, mixed peel (orange peel, glucose-fructose syrup, lemon peel, sugar, preservative (potassium sorbate), acidity regulator (citric acid)), rapeseed oil, glucose syrup, modified maize starch, glacé cherries (cherries, glucose-fructose syrup, sugar, colour (anthocyanins), acidity regulator (citric acid)), humectant (glycerol), mixed spices (coriander, cinnamon, ginger, caraway, nutmeg, clove), ruby port, maize starch, preservative (acetic acid), orange oil), wheat flour, butter 13%, sugar, whey powder, salt, wheat starch, raising agents (diphosphates), sodium carbonates, shea oil, colour (carotenes), including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients

Additives: E160a Carotene , E163 Anthocyanins , E202 Potassium sorbate , E260 Acetic acid , E330 Citric acid , E422 Glycerol , E450 Diphosphates , E500 Sodium carbonates

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: Vegetable fat.

As written on the pack

50% mincemeat (sugar, 28% sultanas, bramley apple pulp, 4% currants, 3,9% brandy, mixed peel [orange peel, glucose-fructose syrup, lemon peel, sugar, preservative: potassium sorbate, acidity regulator: citric acid], rapeseed oil, glucose syrup, modified maize starch, glacé cherries [cherries, glucose-fructose syrup, sugar, colour: anthocyanins, acidity regulator: citric acid], humectant: glycerol, mixed spices [coriander, cinnamon, ginger, caraway, nutmeg, clove], ruby port, maize starch, preservative: acetic acid, orange oil), wheat flour, 13% butter (milk), sugar, whey powder (milk), salt, wheat starch, raising agents: diphosphates, sodium carbonates, shea oil, colour: carotenes, allergy advice for allergens, including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients

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.
  • E163 Anthocyanins 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.
  • E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
  • E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Humectant Humectants are substances which prevent foods from drying out by counteracting the effect of an atmosphere having a low degree of humidity, or promote the dissolution of a powder in an aqueous medium.
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  • 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.

  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Glucose syrup Glucose syrup is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • 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.
  • Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
8 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.
  • Butter Butter, the fat churned from cream.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • 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 fat Vegetable fats are oils that are solid at room temperature, such as palm or coconut fat.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 8 shelf-stable sweet pies

From least to most processed, this one ranks 7th. 100% of the shelf-stable sweet pies 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 8 shelf-stable sweet pies, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 4056489555544, last edited 27 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 E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.