Is it ultra-processed?
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Is M&s Food Hand Finished White Cob ultra-processed?

White breads Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of M&s Food Hand Finished White Cob

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:

  • 14 ingredients
  • 1 additive

Less processed white breads

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

Water, Mother Yeast (Wheat Four, Starter Culture), Durum Wheat Semolina, Yeast (Yeast Vitamin D Yeast), Wheatflour, Salt, Chicory Fibre, Soya Flour, Sea Salt, Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic Acid)

Additives: E300 Ascorbic acid

As written on the pack

Wheatflour contains Gluten (with Wheatflour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Mother Yeast (Wheat Four (contains Gluten), Starter Culture), Durum Wheat Semolina (contains Gluten), Yeast (Yeast Vitamin D Yeast), Fermented Wheatflour (contains Gluten), Salt, Chicory Fibre, Soya Flour, Sea Salt, Flour Treatment Agent: Ascorbic Acid

What makes it ultra-processed

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.
1 ingredient 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.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 367 white breads

From least to most processed, this one ranks 69th. 86% of the white breads 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 367 white breads, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 29204878, last edited 5 June 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.