Is Reese's Peanut Butter Cups minis unwrapped ultra-processed?
Yes, it's ultra-processed
- 1 Unprocessed
- 2 Kitchen staple
- 3 Processed
- 4 Ultra-processed
Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:
- 33 ingredients
- 4 additives
- Nutri-Score E
Less processed confectioneries
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NOVA group
3
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Ingredients
Ultra-processing Processing
milk chocolate flavour coating 65% (sugar" (processing marker), cocoa butter (processing marker), cocoa mass, skimmed milk powder (processing marker), milk fat, lactose (ultra-processing marker), soya lecithin (ultra-processing marker) (e322), polyglycerol polyricinoleate (ultra-processing marker) (e476), from castor bean oil), peanut butter creme 35% (peanuts, sugar" (processing marker), dextrose (ultra-processing marker), cocoa butter (processing marker), hydrogenated vegetable oil (ultra-processing marker) (palm kernel vegetable oil, palm vegetable oil), oil), salt emulsifier (polyglycrol polyricinoleate (e476 (ultra-processing marker)), from castor bean oil), antioxidant, tbhq (e319), "produced from genetically modified sugar beets, and soya beans allergy advice, please see ingredients highlighted in bold storage (to keep this product in perfect condition store in a cool and dry place, 16°c-18°c and consume before the date given)
Additives: E319 Tertiary-butylhydroquinone (tbhq) , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate
As written on the pack
milk chocolate flavour coating (65%) [sugar", cocoa butter, cocoa mass. skimmed milk powder, milk fat, lactose (milk), emulsifiers (soya lecithin (e322). polyglycerol polyricinoleate (e476) from castor bean oil)], peanut butter creme (35%) (peanuts, sugar". dextrose, cocoa butter, hydrogenated vegetable oil (palm kernel and palm oil). salt emulsifier (polyglycrol polyricinoleate (e476) from castor bean oil), antioxidant (tbhq (e319). "produced from genetically modified sugar beets, and soya beans allergy advice: for allergens, please see ingredients highlighted in bold storage: to keep this product in perfect condition store in a cool and dry place (16°c-18°c and consume before the date given
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.
- E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
- E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate Polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR) is an emulsifier made from castor oil.
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.
- Dextrose Dextrose is pure glucose crystallised from starch-derived syrup.
- Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
- Hydrogenated oil Hydrogenation turns liquid oil into a solid fat that resists going rancid.
- Lactose Lactose is milk sugar, crystallised industrially from whey, a by-product of cheese making.
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.
- Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
- Vegetable fat Vegetable fats are oils that are solid at room temperature, such as palm or coconut fat.
- Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
- Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.
- Milk powder Milk powder is milk with the water evaporated off: a preserved form of a whole food rather than an industrial extract.
Among 1,732 confectioneries
From least to most processed, this one ranks 1052nd. 90% of the confectioneries here are ultra-processed.
About this information
- Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0034000470693, last edited 2 June 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 E (from A, best, to E).
- General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.