Is Sainsbury's Oat flapjack slices ultra-processed?
Yes, it's ultra-processed
- 1 Unprocessed
- 2 Kitchen staple
- 3 Processed
- 4 Ultra-processed
Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:
- 17 ingredients
- 1 additive
- Nutri-Score E
Ingredients
Ultra-processing Processing
Oats 41%, Partially Inverted Refiners Syrup (ultra-processing marker), Cows' Milk (Cows' Milk, Sugar (processing marker)), Sugar (processing marker), Butter (processing marker) 11% (Cows' Milk), Margarine (Palm Oil, Rapeseed Oil, Water, Coconut Oil (processing marker), Emulsifier (ultra-processing marker) (mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids (ultra-processing marker)), Flavouring (ultra-processing marker)), Salt (processing marker)
Additives: E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
As written on the pack
Oats (41%), Partially Inverted Refiners Syrup, Sweetened Condensed Skimmed Cows' Milk (Skimmed Cows' Milk, Sugar), Sugar, Butter (11%) (Cows' Milk), Margarine (Palm Oil, Rapeseed Oil, Water, Coconut Oil, Emulsifier: Mono - and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids; Flavouring), Salt.
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.
- E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
- 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.
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.
- Invert sugar Invert sugar is ordinary sugar split into glucose and fructose with acid or enzymes.
4 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.
- Butter Butter, the fat churned from cream.
- Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
- Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
- Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
About this information
- Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00297189, last edited 27 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 E (from A, best, to E).
- General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.