Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Sainsbury's Pain Aux Chocolat ultra-processed?

Chocolate croissant Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Sainsbury's Pain Aux Chocolat

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:

  • 26 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed viennoiseries

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

Fortified Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Plain Chocolate 18% (Sugar, Cocoa Mass, Cocoa Butter, Cows' Milk Fat, Emulsifier (Soya Lecithin)), Butter (Cows' Milk), Water, Sugar, Yeast, Salt, Whole Egg, Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic Acid, Plain Chocolate contains), Cocoa Solids 43%, including cereals containing gluten, lat 7 PA 2085

Additives: E300 Ascorbic acid , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin

As written on the pack

Fortified Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Plain Chocolate (18%) (Sugar, Cocoa Mass, Cocoa Butter, Cows' Milk Fat, Emulsifier: Soya Lecithin), Butter (Cows' Milk) (18%), Water, Sugar, Yeast, Salt, Whole Egg, Flour Treatment Agent: Ascorbic Acid. Plain Chocolate contains: Cocoa Solids 43% minimum. Allergy advice: For allergens, including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients in bold. lat 7 PA 2085

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.
  • Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
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.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 21 chocolate croissant

From least to most processed, this one ranks 6th. 100% of the chocolate croissant 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 21 chocolate croissant, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00283311, 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.
  • 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.