Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Redbull Original ultra-processed?

250 mL Instant beverages Sold in the United Kingdom and the United States

Pack of Redbull Original

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:

  • 17 ingredients
  • 7 additives

Less processed instant beverages

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

Water, Sucrose, Glucose, Citric Acid, Carbon Dioxide, Taurine 0.4%, Sodium Carbonate, Magnesium Carbonate, Caffeine 0.03%, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, vitamins, vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Flavourings, Plain Caramel, Riboflavin

Additives: E101 Riboflavin , E101i Riboflavin , E150a Plain caramel , E290 Carbon dioxide , E330 Citric acid , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500i Sodium carbonate

As written on the pack

Water, Sucrose, Glucose, Citric Acid, Carbon Dioxide, Taurine (0.4%), Sodium Carbonate, Magnesium Carbonate, Caffeine (0.03%), Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Flavourings, Colourings (Plain Caramel, Riboflavin).

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.

  • E101 Riboflavin Colours are substances which add or restore colour in a food, and include natural constituents of foods and natural sources which are normally not consumed as foods as such and not normally used as characteristic ingredients of food.
  • E150a Plain caramel Plain caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars.
  • E290 Carbon dioxide 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.
  • 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.

  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
1 ingredient that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 197 instant beverages

From least to most processed, this one ranks 157th. 57% of the instant beverages 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 197 instant beverages, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 90454615, 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.