Is Rathdaragh Grated Irish Red Cheddar & Mozzarella Cheese ultra-processed?

Grated cheese Sold in Ireland

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Colour
E160a Carotene

7 ingredients
1 additive
Nutri-Score D

Less processed grated cheese

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

Red Cheddar Cheese (processing marker) 49% (Milk, Colour (ultra-processing marker) (Carotenes (ultra-processing marker))), Mozzarella Cheese (processing marker) 49%, Potato Starch (processing marker), Nutrition

Additives: E160a Carotene

As written on the pack

49% Red Cheddar Cheese (Milk, Colour: Carotenes), 49% Mozzarella Cheese (Milk), Potato Starch. Allergy Advice For allergens, see ingredients in bold. Nutrition

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.

E160a Carotene Carotenes are orange-yellow pigments, either synthesised or extracted from carrots, algae or palm oil.
Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.

3 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.
Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 73 grated cheese

From least to most processed, this one ranks 62nd. 33% of the grated cheese 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 73 grated cheese, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 4056489308768, last edited 17 April 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 D (from A, best, to E).
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.