Is it ultra-processed?
Menu

Is Nestle DairyBox ultra-processed?

326g Assorted chocolate candies Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Nestle DairyBox

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:

  • 38 ingredients
  • 5 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed bonbons

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

sugar, cocoa butter, milk, vegetable fats (palm, shea), skimmed milk powder, cocoa mass, whey powder (from milk), glucose syrup, butterfat (from milk), humectant (sorbitol), fat-reduced cocoa powder, emulsifier (lecithins), wheat flour, whole milk powder, malted wheat flour, coconut oil, cocoa powder, concentrated butter (from milk), barley malt, salt, acid (citric acid), stabiliser (invertase), whey protein (from milk), colour (carminic acid), natural vanilla flavourings, natural orange flavouring, natural flavourings

Additives: E1103 Invertase , E120 Cochineal , E322 Lecithins , E330 Citric acid , E420 Sorbitol

As written on the pack

sugar, cocoa butter, milk , vegetable fats (palm, shea), skimmed milk powder, cocoa mass, whey powder (from milk ), glucose syrup, butterfat (from milk ), humectant (sorbitol), fat-reduced cocoa powder, emulsifier (lecithins), wheat flour, whole milk powder, malted wheat flour, coconut oil, cocoa powder, concentrated butter (from milk ), barley malt, salt, acid (citric acid), stabiliser (invertase), whey protein (from milk ), colour (carminic acid), natural vanilla flavourings, natural orange flavouring, natural flavourings,

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.

  • E120 Cochineal Carmine is a red colour made from cochineal insects.
  • 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.
  • E420 Sorbitol Sorbitol is a sugar alcohol used as a sweetener and to keep products moist.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
Show 1 more
  • Humectant Humectants are substances which prevent foods from drying out by counteracting the effect of an atmosphere having a low degree of humidity, or promote the dissolution of a powder in an aqueous medium.

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.
  • 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.
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.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Vegetable fat Vegetable fats are oils that are solid at room temperature, such as palm or coconut fat.
  • 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.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 19 assorted chocolate candies

From least to most processed, this one ranks 11th. 100% of the assorted chocolate candies 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 19 assorted chocolate candies, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 7613039692240, 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 E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.