Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Marks & Spencer Piri piri crisps ultra-processed?

Crisps Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Marks & Spencer Piri piri crisps

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:

  • 18 ingredients
  • 1 additive
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed crisps

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

Potatoes, Rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, rice flour, sea salt, sugar, dried onions, paprika, flavouring, dried garlic, vinegar, chilli, yeast, dried lemon juice, thyme, paprika extract, white pepper, Birds Eye chilli

Additives: E160c Paprika extract

As written on the pack

Potatoes, Rapeseed oil, sunflower oil, rice flour, sea salt, sugar, dried onions, dried paprika, flavouring, dried garlic, dried vinegar, chilli powder, dried yeast extract, dried lemon juice, thyme, paprika extract, ground white pepper, Birds Eye chilli.

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.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
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.

  • Salty snacks Products in the category "Salty snacks" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 1,471 crisps

From least to most processed, this one ranks 777th. 64% of the crisps 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 1,471 crisps, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 29307760, last edited 27 March 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.