Is Nature Valley Protein Salted Caramel Nut Chewy Bar ultra-processed?
Yes, it's ultra-processed
- 1 Unprocessed
- 2 Kitchen staple
- 3 Processed
- 4 Ultra-processed
Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:
- 21 ingredients
- 5 additives
Less processed cereals and their products
-
Sprouted Rolled Oats
One Degree Organic Foods
1 ingredient · no additives
NOVA group
1
-
Old Fashioned Oats
Quaker Oats
1 ingredient · no additives
NOVA group
1
-
Quick 1-Minute Oats
Quaker Oats
1 ingredient · no additives
NOVA group
1
-
Old Fashioned 100% Whole Grain Rolled Oats
Quaker Oats
1 ingredient · no additives
NOVA group
1
Ingredients
Ultra-processing Processing
Roasted peanuts, soy protein isolate, almonds, chicory root, sugar (processing marker), vegetable oils (processing marker) (palm kernel, canola), corn syrup (ultra-processing marker), fructose (ultra-processing marker), vegetable glycerin, rice starch (processing marker), corn starch (processing marker), whey protein (ultra-processing marker), nonfat dry milk (processing marker), salt (processing marker), reduced minerals whey, soy lecithin (ultra-processing marker), peanut flour, natural flavor (ultra-processing marker), baking soda
Additives: E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E422 Glycerol , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500ii Sodium hydrogen carbonate
As written on the pack
Roasted peanuts, soy protein isolate, almonds, chicory root extract, sugar, vegetable oils (palm kernel, canola), corn syrup, fructose, vegetable glycerin, rice starch, corn starch, whey protein concentrate, nonfat dry milk, salt, reduced minerals whey, soy lecithin, partially defatted peanut flour, natural flavor, baking soda.
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.
- E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
- E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
- 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.
- Milk proteins Milk proteins are proteins separated from milk, such as caseinates and whey protein concentrates, added to adjust texture or raise protein content.
- Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
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.
- 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.
- Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.
- Milk powder Milk powder is milk with the water evaporated off: a preserved form of a whole food rather than an industrial extract.
Among 5,078 cereals and their products
From least to most processed, this one ranks 4756th. 57% of the cereals and their products here are ultra-processed.
About this information
- Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0016000508873, last edited 5 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.