Is it ultra-processed?
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Is M&S Serrano Ham & Gouda Tapas Bites ultra-processed?

6 Salty snacks Sold in Ireland and Scotland

It's processed, but not ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Whole foods combined with:

  • 25 ingredients
  • 6 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed salty snacks

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

Serrano Ham 36%, Pork (Made with 154g of Raw Pork per 100g of Serrano Ham), Sea Salt, Gouda Cheese 29%, Gouda Cheese, Lemon Flavoured Manzanilla Olives 21%, Manzanilla Olives 93%, Salt, Lemon, Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid), Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Antioxidant (Ascorbic Acid), Red Peppers 14%, Red Peppers 90%, Salt, Acidity Regulator (Acetic Acid), Preservative (e223), Stabiliser (e509)

Additives: E202 Potassium sorbate , E223 Sodium metabisulphite , E260 Acetic acid , E300 Ascorbic acid , E330 Citric acid , E509 Calcium chloride

As written on the pack

Serrano Ham (36%) Pork (Made with 154g of Raw Pork per 100g of Serrano Ham), Sea Salt, Gouda Cheese (29%) Gouda Cheese (Milk), Lemon Flavoured Manzanilla Olives (21%) Pitted Manzanilla Olives (93%), Salt, Dried Lemon, Acidity Regulator: Citric Acid, Preservative: Potassium Sorbate, Antioxidant: Ascorbic Acid, Red Peppers (14%) Red Peppers (90%), Salt, Acidity Regulator: Acetic Acid, Preservative: E223 (Sulphites), Stabiliser: E509

What makes it processed

Processed ingredients

Processed foods in their own right, such as cheese or milk powder.

  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

Culinary ingredients

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.

Preservation and traditional processing

Keep food safe or ferment it, like preservatives and cultures. A sign of processing, not ultra-processing.

  • 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.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.

Category rules

Open Food Facts puts every product in this category in at least this group.

  • Salty snacks Products in the category "Salty snacks" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 2,718 salty snacks

From least to most processed, this one ranks 1035th. 62% of the salty snacks 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 2,718 salty snacks, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 29397631, 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.
  • 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.