Is it ultra-processed?
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Is M&Ms M&M's salted caramel ultra-processed?

Chocolate candies Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of M&Ms M&M's salted caramel

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:

  • 40 ingredients
  • 15 additives

Less processed chocolate candies

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

sugar, cocoa mass, full cream milk powder, glucose syrup, lactose, sweetened condensed skimmed milk, cocoa butter, palm oil, starch, palm fat, palm stearin, salt, shea fat, humectant (glycerol), emulsifiers (soya lecithin, e471), stabiliser (gum arabic), dried glucose syrup, dextrin, colours (e100, e133, e150a, e160a, e160e, e162, e170, e172), natural flavouring, peanuts, glazing agent (carnauba wax), palm kernel oil, natural vanilla extract, flavouring, solids 14%, milk chocolate contains vegetable fats in addition to cocoa butter

Additives: E100 Curcumin , E133 Brilliant blue FCF , E1400 Dextrin , E150a Plain caramel , E160a Carotene , E160e Beta-apo-8′-carotenal (c30) , E162 Beetroot red , E170 Calcium carbonates , E172 Iron oxides and iron hydroxides , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E414 Acacia gum , E422 Glycerol , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E903 Carnauba wax

As written on the pack

sugar, cocoa mass, full cream milk powder, glucose syrup, lactose, sweetened condensed skimmed milk, cocoa butter, palm oil, starch, palm fat, palm stearin, salt, shea fat, humectant (glycerol), emulsifiers (soya lecithin, e471), stabiliser (gum arabic), dried glucose syrup, dextrin, colours (e100, e133, e150a, e160a, e160e, e162, e170, e172), natural flavouring, peanuts, glazing agent (carnauba wax), palm kernel oil, natural vanilla extract, flavouring, milk chocolate contains milk solids 14% minimum, milk chocolate contains vegetable fats in addition to cocoa butter

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.
  • E133 Brilliant blue FCF Brilliant blue FCF is a synthetic blue dye, listed in the US as FD&C Blue No. 1.
  • E1400 Dextrin Dextrin is starch partly broken down by heat or acid, used as a thickener, binder and coating.
  • E150a Plain caramel Plain caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars.
  • E160a Carotene Carotenes are orange-yellow pigments, either synthesised or extracted from carrots, algae or palm oil.
  • E160e Beta-apo-8′-carotenal (c30) 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.
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  • E162 Beetroot red 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.
  • E170 Calcium carbonates Calcium carbonate is chalk.
  • E172 Iron oxides and iron hydroxides 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.
  • E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
  • E414 Acacia gum Gum arabic (acacia gum) is the hardened sap of acacia trees, used to stabilise flavour emulsions in soft drinks and to coat sweets.
  • E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
  • E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
  • E903 Carnauba wax Carnauba wax comes from the leaves of a Brazilian palm and gives sweets and coated chocolates their shine.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
  • Glazing agent Glazing agents, waxes and shellac for example, coat a surface to make it shiny or stop pieces sticking together.
  • 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.

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.
  • Lactose Lactose is milk sugar, crystallised industrially from whey, a by-product of cheese making.
6 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 fat Vegetable fats are oils that are solid at room temperature, such as palm or coconut fat.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.
  • Milk powder Milk powder is milk with the water evaporated off: a preserved form of a whole food rather than an industrial extract.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 776 chocolate candies

From least to most processed, this one ranks 775th. 91% of the chocolate candies 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 776 chocolate candies, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5900951291661, 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.