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Is Near East Pearled Couscous Mix Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil ultra-processed?

Cereals and their products Sold in the United States

Pack of Near East Pearled Couscous Mix Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil

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
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed cereals and their products

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

Couscous (wheat), maltodextrin, salt, garlic, autolyzed yeast extract, natural flavor, olive oil, onions, yeast extract, parsley, thyme, oregano, sage, rosemary, marjoram, basil, soy protein isolate, rosemary extract, soy lecithin, dried

Additives: E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E392 Extracts of rosemary

As written on the pack

Couscous (wheat), maltodextrin, salt, garlic*, autolyzed yeast extract, natural flavor, olive oil, onions*, yeast extract, parsley*, thyme, oregano, sage, rosemary, marjoram, basil, soy protein isolate, rosemary extract, soy lecithin. *dried

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.
  • 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.

  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
2 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.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 5,078 cereals and their products

From least to most processed, this one ranks 4017th. 57% of the cereals and their products 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 5,078 cereals and their products, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0072251003475, last edited 17 August 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 D (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.