Is Sainsbury's Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese on oatmeal bread ultra-processed?
Yes, it's ultra-processed
- 1 Unprocessed
- 2 Kitchen staple
- 3 Processed
- 4 Ultra-processed
Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:
- Emulsifier
- Gluten
- E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
- E472e Mono- and diacetyltartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
- 53 ingredients
- 3 additives
- Nutri-Score C
Less processed fish sandwiches
Ingredients
Ultra-processing Processing
Oatmeal Bread (Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Folic Acid, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Oatmeal, Wheat Bran, Yeast, Wheat Gluten (ultra-processing marker), Salt (processing marker), Emulsifiers (ultra-processing marker) (mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids (ultra-processing marker)), mono- and Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids (ultra-processing marker), Malted Barley Flour, Rapeseed Oil, Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic Acid), Wheat Flour, Wheat Starch (processing marker)), Smoked Salmon 28% (Salmon (Salmo salar), Salt (processing marker), Sugar (processing marker)), Mayonnaise (processing marker) (Water, Rapeseed Oil, Cornflour, Spirit Vinegar, Pasteurised Free Range Egg Yolk, Sugar (processing marker), White Wine Vinegar, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Salt (processing marker), Mustard Seeds), Full Fat Soft Cheese (processing marker) 8% (Cream (Cows' Milk), Water, Sea Salt (processing marker)), Reduced Fat Soft Cheese (processing marker) 3.5% (Water, Cream (Cows' Milk), Cornflour, Sea Salt (processing marker)), Cornflour, Lemon Juice, Black Pepper
Additives: 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
Oatmeal Bread (Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Folic Acid, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Oatmeal, Wheat Bran, Yeast, Wheat Gluten, Salt, Emulsifiers: Mono - and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids, Mono - and Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of Mono - and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids; Malted Barley Flour, Rapeseed Oil, Flour Treatment Agent: Ascorbic Acid; Wheat Flour, Wheat Starch), Smoked Salmon (28%) (Salmon (Salmo salar) (Fish), Salt, Sugar), Mayonnaise (Water, Rapeseed Oil, Cornflour, Spirit Vinegar, Pasteurised Free Range Egg Yolk, Sugar, White Wine Vinegar, Concentrated Lemon Juice, Salt, Mustard Seeds), Full Fat Soft Cheese (8%) (Cream (Cows' Milk), Water, Sea Salt), Reduced Fat Soft Cheese (3.5%) (Water, Cream (Cows' Milk), Cornflour, Sea Salt), Cornflour, Lemon Juice, Black Pepper.
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.
- 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.
- Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
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.
6 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.
- 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.
- Sauce A prepared sauce used as an ingredient.
- Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.
Among 9 fish sandwiches
From least to most processed, this one ranks 9th. 78% of the fish sandwiches here are ultra-processed.
About this information
- Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00239097, last edited 18 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 C (from A, best, to E).
- General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.