Is it ultra-processed?
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Is M&S Banana And Chocolate Pressed Fruit Bar ultra-processed?

4 x 35g Fruits cereal bars Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of M&S Banana And Chocolate Pressed Fruit Bar

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:

  • 21 ingredients
  • 2 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed fruits cereal bars

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

Date Paste, Almond Butter 14%, Almonds 13%, Dark Chocolate 8% (Cocoa Mass, Sugar, Fat-Reduced Cocoa Powder, Emulsifier (Lecithin), Natural Flavouring), Chicory Fibre, Walnuts, Dried Bananas 1.5%, Vitamin C, Rice Flour, Iron, Natural Flavouring, Zinc, vitamins, vitamin B12, Vitamin D

Additives: E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin

As written on the pack

Date Paste, Almond Butter (14%), Almonds (13%), Dark Chocolate (8%) (Cocoa Mass, Sugar, Fat-Reduced Cocoa Powder, Emulsifier: Lecithin (Soya), Natural Flavouring), Chicory Fibre, Walnuts, Dried Bananas (1.5%), Vitamin C, Rice Flour, Iron, Natural Flavouring, Zinc, Vitamin B12, Vitamin D

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.

  • 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.
  • 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.

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.

  • 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.
2 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.

  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 73 fruits cereal bars

From least to most processed, this one ranks 40th. 88% of the fruits cereal bars 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 73 fruits cereal bars, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 29428533, last edited 25 May 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.