Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Marks & Spencer The American Pepperoni ultra-processed?

Pizzas Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Marks & Spencer The American Pepperoni

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:

  • 33 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed pizzas

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

Mozzarella Cheese, Water, Tomatoes, Pepperoni 9% (Pork 95%, Curing Salt (Salt, Sodium Nitrite), Spices (Cayenne Pepper, Ginger, Paprika, White Pepper), Black Pepper Extract, Garlic, e392, e301, Paprika Extract, Sugar, Salt, Dextrose), Tomato Purée, Rapeseed Oil, Sugar, Yeast, Durum Wheat Semolina, Salt, Dextrose, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Cornflour, Basil, Coarse Black Pepper, Garlic Purée

Additives: E160c Paprika extract , E250 Sodium nitrite , E301 Sodium ascorbate , E392 Extracts of rosemary

As written on the pack

Wheatflour contains Gluten (with Wheatflour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Mozzarella Cheese (Milk) (27%), Water, Tomatoes, Pepperoni (9%) (Pork (95%), Curing Salt (Salt, Preservative: Sodium Nitrite), Ground Spices (Cayenne Pepper, Ginger, Paprika, White Pepper), Black Pepper Extract, Garlic, Antioxidant: E392, E301, Paprika Extract, Sugar, Salt, Dextrose), Tomato Purée, Rapeseed Oil, Sugar, Yeast, Durum Wheat Semolina (contains Gluten), Salt, Dextrose, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Cornflour, Basil, Coarse Black Pepper, Garlic Purée

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.

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.

  • Dextrose Dextrose is pure glucose crystallised from starch-derived syrup.
  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
6 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.

  • E250 Sodium nitrite 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.
  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" 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.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 371 pizzas

From least to most processed, this one ranks 248th. 78% of the pizzas 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 371 pizzas, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 29298792, last edited 15 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 C (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.