Is Miracle Whip Dressing ultra-processed?

30 fl. oz (1 pt 14 fl. oz) 887 mL Mayonnaises Sold in the United States

Pack of Miracle Whip Dressing

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:

  • 13 ingredients
  • No additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed mayonnaises

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

water, soybean oil (processing marker), high fructose corn syrup (ultra-processing marker), vinegar, modified cornstarch (ultra-processing marker), eggs, salt (processing marker), natural flavor (ultra-processing marker), mustard flour, potassium sorbate as a preservative, paprika, spice, dried garlic

As written on the pack

WATER, SOYBEAN OIL, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, VINEGAR, MODIFIED CORNSTARCH, EGGS, SALT, NATURAL FLAVOR, MUSTARD FLOUR, POTASSIUM SORBATE AS A PRESERVATIVE, PAPRIKA, SPICE, DRIED GARLIC.

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.
  • Modified starch Modified starch is starch altered physically, with enzymes or chemically, so that it thickens, gels or survives freezing and heating better than ordinary starch.

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.
  • High fructose corn syrup High-fructose corn syrup is made from corn starch: enzymes break it down to glucose and convert part of that into fructose, giving a syrup about as sweet as table sugar.
  • Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
3 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.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 239 mayonnaises

From least to most processed, this one ranks 205th. 72% of the mayonnaises 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 239 mayonnaises, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0021000026494, last edited 19 September 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.