Is it ultra-processed?
Menu

Is Mug Shot Creamy Cheese Pasta ultra-processed?

68g Instant pasta with cheese Sold in the United Kingdom and France

Pack of Mug Shot Creamy Cheese Pasta

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:

  • 21 ingredients
  • 3 additives

Less processed instant pasta with cheese

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

Dried Pasta (Durum WHEAT Semolina, Spinach Powder), Maltodextrin, Potato Starch, Cheese Powder (from MILK), Palm Oil, Dried Glucose Syrup, Natural Flavourings (contain WHEAT, milk), Salt, Onion Powder, Whey Powder (from MILK), MILK Proteins, Parsley, Dipotassium Phosphate, mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids, Yeast Extract

Additives: E340 Potassium phosphates , E340ii Dipotassium phosphate , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids

As written on the pack

Dried Pasta [Durum WHEAT Semolina, Spinach Powder], Maltodextrin, Potato Starch, Cheese Powder (from MILK), Palm Oil, Dried Glucose Syrup, Natural Flavourings (contain WHEAT, MILK), Salt, Onion Powder, Whey Powder (from MILK), MILK Proteins, Dried Parsley, Stabiliser (Dipotassium Phosphate), Emulsifier (Mono - and Di-glycerides of Fatty Acids), Yeast Extract.

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.

  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Glucose syrup Glucose syrup is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
  • Milk proteins Milk proteins are proteins separated from milk, such as caseinates and whey protein concentrates, added to adjust texture or raise protein content.
  • Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
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.

  • 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.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 9 instant pasta with cheese

From least to most processed, this one ranks 8th. 78% of the instant pasta with cheese 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 9 instant pasta with cheese, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5021476000511, last edited 17 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.