Is it ultra-processed?
Menu

Is Sainsbury’s Mini Wiggles ultra-processed?

Cakes Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Sainsbury’s Mini Wiggles

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:

  • 47 ingredients
  • 14 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed cakes

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

Our ingredients Milk Chocolate 28% (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Cocoa Mass, Cows' Milk, Butteroil (Cows' Milk), Palm Oil Shea Oil Emulsiers (Soya Lecithin), Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate, Flavouring), Sugar, Glucose Syrup, Wheat Flour, Palm Oil, Pasteurised Egg Humectant Glycerol, Cocoa Butter, Soya Flour, Water, Cows' Milk, Fat Reduced Cocoa Powder, Whey Powder (Cows' Milk), Shea Oil, Wheat Starch, Potato Starch, Raising Agents (Diphosphates), Sodium Carbonate, Emulsifiers (mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids), Polyglycerol Esters of Fatty Acids Sorbitan Tristearate, Soya Lecithin, Sunflower Lecithin, Preservative (Potassium Sorbate), Acidity Regulator (Citric Acid Flavouring Stabiliser), Sorbitol, Colours (Iron Oxide), Curcumin, Anthocyanins, Beetroot Juice, Coconut Oil, Glazing Agent (Beeswax)

Additives: E100 Curcumin , E163 Anthocyanins , E202 Potassium sorbate , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E420 Sorbitol , E422 Glycerol , E450 Diphosphates , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate , E492 Sorbitan tristearate , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500i Sodium carbonate , E901 White and yellow beeswax

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: E422 Glycerol, E492 Sorbitan tristearate.

As written on the pack

Our ingredients Milk Chocolate (28%) (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Cocoa Mass, Dried Skimmed Cows' Milk Powder, Butteroil (Cows' Milk), Palm Oil Shea Oil Emulsiers: Soya Lecithin, Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate; Flavouring), Sugar, Glucose Syrup, Wheat Flour, Palm Oil, Pasteurised Egg Humectant Glycerol, Cocoa Butter, Soya Flour, Water, Cows' Milk Powder, Fat Reduced Cocoa Powder, Whey Powder (Cows' Milk), Shea Oil, Wheat Starch, Potato Starch, Raising Agents: Diphosphates, Sodium Carbonate; Emulsifiers: Mono - and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids, Polyglycerol Esters of Fatty Acids Sorbitan Tristearate, Soya Lecithin, Sunflower Lecithin; Preservative: Potassium Sorbate; Acidity Regulator: Citric Acid Flavouring Stabiliser: Sorbitol; Colours: Iron Oxide, Curcumin, Anthocyanins; Concentrated Beetroot Juice, Coconut Oil, Glazing Agent: Beeswax.

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.

  • E100 Curcumin 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.
  • E163 Anthocyanins 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.
  • 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.
  • E420 Sorbitol Sorbitol is a sugar alcohol used as a sweetener and to keep products moist.
  • E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
  • E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.
Show 8 more
  • E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
  • E476 Polyglycerol polyricinoleate Polyglycerol polyricinoleate (PGPR) is an emulsifier made from castor oil.
  • E492 Sorbitan tristearate Emulsifiers are substances which make it possible to form or maintain a homogenous mixture of two or more immiscible phases such as oil and water in a foodstuff.
  • E901 White and yellow beeswax A food additive used to dissolve, dilute, disperse or otherwise physically modify a food additive or nutrient without altering its function -and without exerting any technological effect itself- in order to facilitate its handling, application or use of the food additive or nutrient.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
  • Glazing agent Glazing agents, waxes and shellac for example, coat a surface to make it shiny or stop pieces sticking together.

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.
  • Glucose syrup Glucose syrup is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
  • Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
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.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • 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.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 377 cakes

From least to most processed, this one ranks 360th. 94% of the cakes 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 377 cakes, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00310505, last edited 16 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 E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.