Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Simply Garlic bread ultra-processed?

170 g Breads Sold in the United Kingdom and Ireland

Pack of Simply Garlic bread

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:

  • 28 ingredients
  • 4 additives

Less processed breads

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

baguette (wheat flour (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), water, yeast, salt, wheat gluten, preservative (calcium propionate), flour treatment agent (ascorbic acid)), garlic nd parsley spread 28% (margarine (palm oil, rapeseed oil, water, salt, emulsifier (mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids), flavouring, colour (carotenes)), garlic purée, parsley)

Additives: E160a Carotene , E282 Calcium propionate , E300 Ascorbic acid , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids

As written on the pack

baguette (wheat flour (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), water, yeast, salt, wheat gluten, preservative: calcium propionate, flour treatment agent: ascorbic acid), 28% garlic nd parsley spread (margarine [palm oil, rapeseed oil, water, salt, emulsifier: mono - and diglycerides of fatty acids, flavouring, colour: carotenes], garlic purée, parsley),

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.

  • E160a Carotene Carotenes are orange-yellow pigments, either synthesised or extracted from carrots, algae or palm oil.
  • E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
  • 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.
  • 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.

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

  • Salty snacks Products in the category "Salty snacks" are at least group 3.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Bread An ingredient mostly produced industrially and rarely used in home kitchens.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 2,388 breads

From least to most processed, this one ranks 2152nd. 71% of the breads 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 2,388 breads, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 4056489462071, 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.