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Is Pepperidge Farm Pirouette Chocolate Hazelnut ultra-processed?

13.5 oz (382 g) Chocolate stuffed wafers Sold in the United States, Bolivia and France

Pack of Pepperidge Farm Pirouette Chocolate Hazelnut

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:

  • 19 ingredients
  • 7 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed chocolate biscuits

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, wheat flour, palm oil, maltodextrin, dextrose, cocoa processed with alkali, whey powder 2%, rice flour, hazelnuts, caramel color, soy lecithin, milk powder, polyglycerol esters of fatty acids, salt, mono- and DIGLYCERIDES, beta carotene (color), coconut oil, enzyme

Additives: E150c Ammonia caramel , E160a Carotene , E160ai Beta-carotene , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E475 Polyglycerol esters of fatty acids

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: E150c Ammonia caramel.

As written on the pack

SUGAR, WHEAT FLOUR, PALM OIL, MALTODEXTRIN, DEXTROSE, COCOA PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, WHEY POWDER 2%, RICE FLOUR, HAZELNUTS, CARAMEL COLOR, SOY LECITHIN, MILK POWDER, POLYGLYCEROL ESTERS OF FATTY ACIDS, SALT, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, BETA CAROTENE (COLOR), COCONUT OIL, ENZYME.

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.

  • E150c Ammonia caramel Ammonia caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars with ammonia compounds.
  • E160a Carotene Carotenes are orange-yellow pigments, either synthesised or extracted from carrots, algae or palm oil.
  • 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.
  • E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
  • E475 Polyglycerol esters of fatty acids Emulsifiers are substances which make it possible to form or maintain a homogenous mixture of two or more immiscible phases such as oil and water in a foodstuff.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.

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.

  • Dextrose Dextrose is pure glucose crystallised from starch-derived syrup.
  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
  • 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.
5 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 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 13 chocolate stuffed wafers

From least to most processed, this one ranks 13th. 100% of the chocolate stuffed wafers 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 13 chocolate stuffed wafers, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0014100087830, last edited 25 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.