Is Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Pork Sausages ultra-processed?

Sausages Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Pork Sausages

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:

  • 23 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed sausages

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

British Pork 93%, Water, Tapioca Starch (processing marker), Salt (processing marker), Rice Flour, Gram Flour, White Pepper, Nutmeg, Coriander, Ginger, Chilli, Clove, Onion, Sage, Stabiliser (Sodium Triphosphate (ultra-processing marker)), Yeast Extract, Preservative (processing marker) (Sodium Metabisulphite), Antioxidant (Ascorbic Acid), Maize Starch (processing marker), dextrose (ultra-processing marker)

Additives: E223 Sodium metabisulphite , E300 Ascorbic acid , E451 Triphosphates , E451i Pentasodium triphosphate

As written on the pack

British Pork (93%), Water, Tapioca Starch, Salt, Rice Flour, Gram Flour, White Pepper, Nutmeg, Coriander, Ginger, Chilli Powder, Clove, Onion Powder, Sage, Stabiliser: Sodium Triphosphate; Yeast Extract, Preservative: Sodium Metabisulphite (Sulphites); Antioxidant: Ascorbic Acid; Maize Starch, dextrose

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.

  • E451 Triphosphates 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.

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.

  • Dextrose Dextrose is pure glucose crystallised from starch-derived syrup.
  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
5 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.

  • Prepared meats Products in the category "Prepared meats" are at least group 3.
  • Sausages Products in the category "Sausages" are at least group 3.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 337 sausages

From least to most processed, this one ranks 209th. 80% of the sausages 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 337 sausages, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00473293, last edited 5 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.