Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Raku Chicken Shawarma Salad ultra-processed?

Chicken salads Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Raku Chicken Shawarma Salad

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:

  • 65 ingredients
  • 5 additives
  • Nutri-Score A

Less processed chicken salads

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

Sliced shawarma chicken breast 18% (chicken breast, maize starch, salt, garlic, allspice, cumin, smoked paprika, black pepper, cinnamon, coriander, turmeric, chilli, clove, fenugreek), cooked green lentils 17% (water, green lentils), couscous 13% (water, durum wheat semolina, carrot juice, sunflower oil, mushroom, onion, salt, onion, black pepper), cucumber, red pepper, yoghurt, mint sauce (rapeseed oil, water, spirit vinegar, sugar, free range egg yolk, skimmed milk yoghurt powder, salt, acidity regulator (acetic acid), stabilisers (xanthan gum, guar gum), preservative (potassium sorbate), mint, black pepper, natural mint flavouring), red quinoa 7% (water, red quinoa), lettuce, carrot, red onion (red onion, rice vinegar, sugar, salt), baby spinach, black olives (olives, salt, stabilizer (ferrous gluconate))

Additives: E202 Potassium sorbate , E260 Acetic acid , E412 Guar gum , E415 Xanthan gum , E579 Iron gluconate

As written on the pack

Sliced shawarma chicken breast (18%) (chicken breast, maize starch, salt, garlic granules, ground allspice, ground cumin, smoked paprika powder, ground black pepper, ground cinnamon, ground coriander, ground turmeric, chilli powder, ground clove, ground fenugreek), cooked green lentils (17%) (water, green lentils), seasoned cooked couscous (13%) (water, durum wheat semolina, carrot juice concentrate, sunflower oil, mushroom concentrate, onion powder, salt, onion juice concentrate, black pepper), cucumber, grilled red pepper, yoghurt and mint sauce (rapeseed oil, water, spirit vinegar, sugar, free range egg yolk powder, skimmed milk yoghurt powder, salt, acidity regulator (acetic acid), stabilisers (xanthan gum, guar gum), preservative (potassium sorbate), dried mint, ground black pepper, natural mint flavouring), cooked red quinoa (7%) (water, red quinoa), lettuce, carrot, pickled red onion (red onion, rice vinegar, sugar, salt), baby spinach, black olives (olives, salt, stabilizer (ferrous gluconate)).

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.

  • 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.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
7 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.

  • E202 Potassium sorbate Preservatives are substances which prolong the shelf-life of foods by protecting them against deterioration caused by micro-organisms and/or which protect against growth of pathogenic micro-organisms.
  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • 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 9 chicken salads

From least to most processed, this one ranks 4th. 78% of the chicken salads 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 9 chicken salads, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5035272145345, 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 A (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.