Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Sainsbury's Red Leicester Ploughmans Sandwich (No Mayo) ultra-processed?

203g Club sandwiches Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Sainsbury's Red Leicester Ploughmans Sandwich (No Mayo)

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:

  • 58 ingredients
  • 6 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed sandwiches

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

Bread (Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Folic Acid, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Malted Wheat Flakes, Wheat Bran, Wheat Gluten, Yeast, Malted Barley Flour, Salt, Emulsifiers (mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids), mono- and Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids, Malted Wheat Flour, Rapeseed Oil, Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic Acid), Wheat Flour, Wheat Starch), Red Leicester Cheese 22% (Cows' Milk, Colour (Annatto Norbixin)), Tomatoes 16%, Branston Small Chunk Pickle 7% (Vegetables in Variable Proportions (Carrot, Rutabaga, Onion, Cauliflower), Sugar, Barley Malt Vinegar, Spirit Vinegar, Water, Tomato Purée, Date Paste (Dates, Rice Flour), Apple Pulp, Salt, Modified Maize Starch, Colour (Sulphite Ammonia Caramel), Onion, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Spices, Colouring Food (Barley Malt), Herb, Spice Extracts), Lettuce, Butter (Cows' Milk)

Additives: E150d Sulphite ammonia caramel , E160b Annatto , E160bii Annatto norbixin , E300 Ascorbic acid , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E472e Mono- and diacetyltartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids

As written on the pack

Malted Bread (Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Folic Acid, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Malted Wheat Flakes, Wheat Bran, Wheat Gluten, Yeast, Malted Barley Flour, Salt, Emulsifiers: Mono - and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids, Mono - and Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of Mono - and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids; Malted Wheat Flour, Rapeseed Oil, Flour Treatment Agent: Ascorbic Acid; Wheat Flour, Wheat Starch), Red Leicester Cheese (22%) (Cows' Milk, Colour: Annatto Norbixin), Tomatoes (16%), Branston Small Chunk Pickle (7%) (Vegetables in Variable Proportions (Carrot, Rutabaga, Onion, Cauliflower), Sugar, Barley Malt Vinegar, Spirit Vinegar, Water, Tomato Purée, Date Paste (Dates, Rice Flour), Apple Pulp, Salt, Modified Maize Starch, Colour: Sulphite Ammonia Caramel; Onion Powder, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Spices, Colouring Food (Roasted Barley Malt Extract), Herb and Spice Extracts), Lettuce, Butter (Cows' Milk)

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.

  • E150d Sulphite ammonia caramel Sulphite ammonia caramel is the dark brown colour in colas and many sauces, made by heating sugars with sulphite and ammonia compounds.
  • E160b Annatto 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.
  • E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
  • E472e Mono- and diacetyltartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids 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.
  • 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.
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  • Modified starch Modified starch is starch altered physically, with enzymes or chemically, so that it thickens, gels or survives freezing and heating better than ordinary starch.

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.

  • Gluten Wheat gluten, sold as "vital wheat gluten", is the protein washed out of wheat flour.
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.

  • Butter Butter, the fat churned from cream.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Sandwiches Products in the category "Sandwiches" are at least group 3.
  • Bread An ingredient mostly produced industrially and rarely used in home kitchens.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 18 club sandwiches

From least to most processed, this one ranks 17th. 100% of the club sandwiches 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 18 club sandwiches, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00237758, last edited 24 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 D (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.