Is it ultra-processed?
Menu

Is McVitie's Rich Tea The Cocoa One - McVitie's - McVitie's ultra-processed?

300g Chocolate biscuits Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of McVitie's Rich Tea The Cocoa One - McVitie's - McVitie's

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:

  • 23 ingredients
  • 5 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed chocolate biscuits

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

flour (wheat flour, calcium, feedba 152 36 0.1g 5.59 1.39 0.7g 0.60 0.059 iron, niacin, thiamin), sunflower oil, sugar, polydextrose, fat reduced cocoa powder, glucose-fructose syrup, barley malt extract, raising agents (ammonium its per pack (36 bicarbonate), sodium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate), natural flavouring, salt, including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients in bol the ne emal service best b your st tel (f uk 08 mail, outsi plds e)

Additives: E1200 Polydextrose , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500ii Sodium hydrogen carbonate , E501 Potassium carbonates , E501ii Potassium hydrogen carbonate

As written on the pack

flour (wheat flour, calcium, feedba 152 36 0.1g 5.59 1.39 0.7g 0.60 0.059 iron, niacin, thiamin), sunflower oil, sugar, polydextrose, fat reduced cocoa powder 1.1g (3%), glucose-fructose syrup, barley malt extract, raising agents (ammonium its per pack: 36 bicarbonate, sodium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate), natural flavouring, salt. for allergens, including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients in bol the ne emal service best b your st tel: f uk 08 mail (outsi plds e

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.

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

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.

  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
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.

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

How the NOVA groups work

Among 301 chocolate biscuits

From least to most processed, this one ranks 62nd. 95% of the chocolate biscuits 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 301 chocolate biscuits, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000168002422, last edited 6 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.