Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Sainsbury's Green Pesto Sauce ultra-processed?

190g Green pestos Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Sainsbury's Green Pesto Sauce

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:

  • 22 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed green pestos

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

Basil 48%, Vegetable Oil (Sunflower Refined Soyabean, Corn, Oil (Rapeseed Oil, Olive Oil)), Grana Padano Cheese (Cows' Milk, Egg Lysozyme), Cashew Nuts 5%, Glucose, Potato Flakes, Vegetable Fibre, Salt, Lactic Acid, Pecorino Romano Cheese (Sheep's Milk), Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Pine Nuts 0.5%, Garlic Powder, Ascorbic Acid

Additives: E1105 Lysozyme , E270 Lactic acid , E300 Ascorbic acid

As written on the pack

Basil (48%), Vegetable Oil (Sunflower Refined Soyabean, Corn, Rapeseed or Olive Oil), Grana Padano Cheese (Cows' Milk, Contains Preservative: Egg Lysozyme) (5%), Cashew Nuts (5%), Glucose, Potato Flakes, Vegetable Fibre, Salt, Acidity Regulator: Lactic Acid; Pecorino Romano Cheese (Sheep's Milk) (0.5%), Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Pine Nuts (0.5%), Garlic Powder, Antioxidant: Ascorbic Acid.

What makes it ultra-processed

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.
  • Vegetable fiber Isolated plant fibres, such as inulin, oat fibre or bamboo fibre, are extracted industrially and added to change texture or support "source of fibre" claims.
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.

  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 79 green pestos

From least to most processed, this one ranks 68th. 49% of the green pestos 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 79 green pestos, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00408950, last edited 31 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.