Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Philadelphia Light Cream Cheese Product ultra-processed?

250g Cream cheeses Sold in Canada

Pack of Philadelphia Light Cream Cheese Product

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:

  • 8 ingredients
  • 5 additives
  • Nutri-Score A

Less processed cream cheeses

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

milk ingredients, salt, bacterial culture, lactic acid, xanthan gum, carob bean gum, guar gum, sorbic acid

Additives: E200 Sorbic acid , E270 Lactic acid , E410 Locust bean gum , E412 Guar gum , E415 Xanthan gum

As written on the pack

Modified milk ingredients, salt, bacterial culture, lactic acid, xanthan gum, carob bean gum, guar gum, sorbic acid

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.

  • E410 Locust bean gum Locust bean gum (carob gum) is a thickener and stabiliser from the seeds of the carob tree.
  • E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
  • E415 Xanthan gum Xanthan gum is a thickener made by fermenting sugar with the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris.

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.

  • Milk An ingredient mostly produced industrially and rarely used in home kitchens.
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.

  • Cheeses Products in the category "Cheeses" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 122 cream cheeses

From least to most processed, this one ranks 107th. 64% of the cream cheeses 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 122 cream cheeses, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0068100011173, last edited 18 February 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 A (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.