Is M&S Sweet Chilli Rice Cake ultra-processed?

Puffed rice cakes Sold in the United Kingdom

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

E160c Paprika extract

11 ingredients
1 additive
Nutri-Score C

Less processed puffed rice cakes

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

Brown Rice 75%, Rapeseed Oil, Rice Flour, Sugar Dried Yeast Extract, Dried Onions Dried Garlic Dried Vinegar Sea Salt, Dried Chillies Ground Fennel, Acidity, Regulator (Citric Acid Flavouring Dried Lemon Juice Cayenne Pepper Extract Ground Star Anise), Fennel Extract Liquorice Extract, Habanero Chilli Extract Paprika Extract

Additives: E160c Paprika extract

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: E160c Paprika extract.

As written on the pack

• Wholegrain Brown Rice (75%) Rapeseed Oil - Rice Flour - Sugar Dried Yeast Extract - Dried Onions Dried Garlic Dried Vinegar Sea Salt - Dried Chillies Ground Fennel · Acidity • • • Regulator: Citric Acid Flavouring Dried Lemon Juice Cayenne Pepper Extract Ground Star Anise - Fennel Extract Liquorice Extract. Habanero Chilli Extract Paprika Extract.

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.

E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 142 puffed rice cakes

From least to most processed, this one ranks 67th. 63% of the puffed rice cakes 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 142 puffed rice cakes, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 29383504, last edited 17 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 C (from A, best, to E).
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.