Is Marks & Spencer Baby Broccoli ultra-processed?

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:

Invert sugar
E422 Glycerol
E450 Diphosphates

27 ingredients
4 additives
Nutri-Score D

Less processed 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

Sugar (processing marker), Carrots 11%, Rapeseed Oil Pasteurised Free Range Egg, Soft Dark Brown Su ar, Orange Juice Soaked Raisins, Concentrated Orange Juice Brown Sugar 7%, Full Fat Soft Cheese (processing marker), Glycerol (ultra-processing marker), Butter (processing marker), Pineapple, Desiccated Coconut, Golden Syrup (ultra-processing marker) (Invert Sugar Svrup), Invert Sugar Svrup, Nibbed Walnuts Orange Peel Ground Spices (Cinnamon Nutmeg Cassia Coriander, Caraway, Ginger, Cloves), Raising Agent, Sodium Bicarbonate, e450 (ultra-processing marker), Corour (Plain Caramel Pasteurised Lemon Juice, Stabiliser), Xanthan Gum Palm Oil, Salt Cornflour

Additives: E422 Glycerol , E450 Diphosphates , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500ii Sodium hydrogen carbonate

As written on the pack

Wheatflour contains Gluten (With Wheatflour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin) • Sugar • Carrots (11 %) Rapeseed Oil Pasteurised Free Range Egg • Soft Dark Brown Su ar • Orange Juice Soaked Raisins (7 % Concentrated Orange Juice Brown Sugar • Full Fat Soft Cheese (Milk) • Humectant: Glycerol • Butter (Milk) • Pineapple • Desiccated Coconut • Golden Syrup (Invert Sugar Svrup) • Invert Sugar Svrup • Nibbed Walnuts Orange Peel Ground Spices (Cinnamon Nutmeg Cassia Coriander • Caraway • Ginger • Cloves) • Raising Agent: Sodium Bicarbonate, E450 • Corour: Plain Caramel Pasteurised Lemon Juice • Stabiliser: Xanthan Gum Palm Oil • Salt Cornflour.

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.

E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.

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.

Invert sugar Invert sugar is ordinary sugar split into glucose and fructose with acid or enzymes.

4 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.

Butter Butter, the fat churned from cream.
Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.
Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 377 cakes

From least to most processed, this one ranks 102nd. 94% of the 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 377 cakes, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00726689, last edited 22 August 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.