Is Popchips Sea Salt & Vinegar Potato Snacks ultra-processed?

23g Puffed salty snacks made from potato Sold in the United Kingdom and France

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Flavouring
Maltodextrin

16 ingredients
2 additives
Nutri-Score C

Less processed puffed salty snacks made from potato

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

potatoes 59%, sunflower oil (processing marker), seasoning (potato maltodextrin (ultra-processing marker), vinegar, sea salt (processing marker), salt (processing marker), sugar (processing marker), acid (citric acid), natural flavourings (ultra-processing marker), yeast extract, antioxidant (extracts of rosemary)), rice flour, potato starch (processing marker)

Additives: E330 Citric acid , E392 Extracts of rosemary

As written on the pack

59% dried potatoes, sunflower oil, seasoning (potato maltodextrin, vinegar powder, sea salt, salt, sugar, acid: citric acid; natural flavourings, yeast extract, antioxidant: extracts of rosemary), rice flour, potato starch.

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.

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.

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.

Salty snacks Products in the category "Salty snacks" are at least group 3.
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.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 28 puffed salty snacks made from potato

From least to most processed, this one ranks 10th. 86% of the puffed salty snacks made from potato 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 28 puffed salty snacks made from potato, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5060292302508, last edited 2 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 C (from A, best, to E).
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.