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Is Merchant Gourmet Spiced Grain and Chestnuts with Wild Rice and Cranberries ultra-processed?

250g Plant-based meals Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Merchant Gourmet Spiced Grain and Chestnuts with Wild Rice and Cranberries

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:

  • 57 ingredients
  • 2 additives
  • Nutri-Score A

Less processed plant-based meals

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

Pearl Barley 68% (Water, Pearl Barley), Chestnuts 11% (Water, Chestnuts), Wild Rice 70% (Water, Wild Rice), Cranberries 5% (Sugar, Cranberries, Rice Flour, Sunflower Oil), Onion, Sunflower Oil, Onion, Vegetable Bouillon (Salt, Yeast Extract, Dextrose, Potato Starch, Onion Extract, Carrot Powder, Parsley, Colour (Curcumin), Herb Extracts (Marjoram, Thyme, Sage), Pepper Extract), Salt, Nutmeg, Mushroom Seasoning (Rice Flour, Salt, Mushroom Powder, Sugar, Onion, Yeast Extract Powder, Garlic, Parsley, Black Pepper, Natural Flavouring), Stabiliser (Guar Gum), Cinnamon Powder, Sage, Thyme, Clove, Parsley, Dried Rosemary, For best results, hear the the pouch to lo dash of water, Otherwise at the top and microws and simply enjoy them co Allergens, including cereals containing gluten

Additives: E100 Curcumin , E412 Guar gum

As written on the pack

Cooked Pearl Barley (68%) (Water, Pearl Barley), Cooked Chestnuts (11%) (Water, Dehydrated Chestnuts), Cooked Wild Rice (70%) (Water, Wild Rice), Dried Cranberries (5%) (Sugar, Cranberries, Rice Flour, Sunflower Oil), Onion, Sunflower Oil, Onion Powder, Vegetable Bouillon (Salt, Yeast Extract, Dextrose, Potato Starch, Onion Extract, Carrot Powder, Parsley, Colour: Curcumin, Herb Extracts (Marjoram, Thyme, Sage), Pepper Extract), Salt, Ground Nutmeg, Mushroom Seasoning (Rice Flour, Salt, Mushroom Powder, Sugar, Onion Powder, Yeast Extract Powder, Garlic Powder, Parsley, Black Pepper, Natural Flavouring), Stabiliser: Guar Gum, Cinnamon Powder, Dried Sage, Thyme, Clove Powder, Dried Parsley, Dried Rosemary. For best results, hear the the pouch to lo dash of water. Otherwise at the top and microws or simply enjoy them co Allergens: For allergens, including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients in bold.

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.

  • E100 Curcumin Colours are substances which add or restore colour in a food, and include natural constituents of foods and natural sources which are normally not consumed as foods as such and not normally used as characteristic ingredients of food.
  • E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • 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.

  • 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.
5 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.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • 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 65 plant-based meals

From least to most processed, this one ranks 63rd. 49% of the plant-based meals 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 65 plant-based meals, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5018095011851, 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 A (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.