Is Special k the original ultra-processed?

Cereal flakes Sold in the United Kingdom and Morocco

It's processed, but not ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Whole foods combined with:

Salt
Sugar

16 ingredients
No additives

Less processed cereal flakes

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

Rice 40%, wholewheat 37%, sugar (processing marker), barley 5%, malted barley flour, salt (processing marker), barley malt extract, niacin, iron, vitamins, vitamin B6, riboflavin, vitamin B2, folic acid, vitamin D, vitamin B12

As written on the pack

Rice (40%), wholewheat (37%), sugar, barley (5%), malted barley flour, salt, barley malt extract, niacin, iron, vitamin B6, riboflavin (B2), folic acid, vitamin D, vitamin B12

What makes it processed

Culinary ingredients

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.
Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 332 cereal flakes

From least to most processed, this one ranks 193rd. 27% of the cereal flakes 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 332 cereal flakes, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5059319024394, last edited 19 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.
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.