Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Lidl Macaroni & Cheese ultra-processed?

Macaroni and cheese Sold in Ireland

Pack of Lidl 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:

  • 24 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score B

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

Dried Pasta 75% (Durum Wheat Semolina), Cheese 9%, Cornflour, Yogurt, Flavourings (contain Milk, Wheat, Barley), Dried Onion, Maltodextrin, Whey, Dried Garlic, Sugar, Cream, Salt, Stabilisers (Phosphates), Diphosphates, Polyphosphates, Yeast Extract, Colour (Curcumin), including Cereals containing Gluten

Additives: E100 Curcumin , E450 Diphosphates , E452 Polyphosphates

As written on the pack

75% Dried Pasta (Durum Wheat Semolina), 9% Dried Cheese (Milk), Cornflour, Dried Yogurt (Milk), Flavourings (contain Milk, Wheat, Barley), Dried Onion, Maltodextrin, Dried Whey (Milk), Dried Garlic, Sugar, Dried Cream (Milk), Salt, Stabilisers: Phosphates, Diphosphates and Polyphosphates; Yeast Extract, Colour: Curcumin. Allergy Advice For allergens, including Cereals containing Gluten, see ingredients in bold. May also contain Egg.

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.

  • E100 Curcumin 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.
  • E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.
  • E452 Polyphosphates Emulsifiers are substances which make it possible to form or maintain a homogenous mixture of two or more immiscible phases such as oil and water in a foodstuff.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • 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.

  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
  • 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.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • 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 43rd. 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 4056489175285, last edited 2 April 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 B (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.