Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Spicy Veg Bao Buns ultra-processed?

Frozen ready-made meals Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Spicy Veg Bao Buns

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:

  • 44 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed frozen ready-made meals

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

Wheat flour, water, vegetables 13% (carrot, wood ear mushroom, Chinese cabbage, red pepper, water chestnut, spring onion, shiitake mushroom), tofu (soya bean, firming agent (magnesium chloride)), soybean paste (water, soya bean, wheat flour, salt), sugar, corn starch, soy sauce (water, soya bean, wheat flour, salt), soya protein, soya bean oil, pea starch noodles, sesame oil, yeast, onion, modified starch, raising agents (sodium carbonates), diphosphates, chilli, garlic, salt, ginger, Szechuan pepper, paprika, colour (chlorophyl)

Additives: E14XX Modified Starch , E450 Diphosphates , E500 Sodium carbonates , E511 Magnesium chloride

As written on the pack

Wheat flour, water, vegetables (13%) (carrot, wood ear mushroom, Chinese leaf cabbage, red pepper, water chestnut, spring onion, shiitake mushroom), tofu (soya bean, firming agent*: magnesium chloride), soybean paste (water, soya bean, wheat flour, salt), sugar, corn starch, soy sauce (water, soya bean, wheat flour, salt), soya protein, soya bean oil, pea starch noodles, sesame oil, yeast, onion powder, modified starch, raising agents**: sodium carbonates, diphosphates; chilli powder, garlic powder, salt, ginger, Szechuan pepper, paprika, colour***: chlorophyl.

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.

  • E14xx Modified Starch Modified starches (E1400 to E1452) are starches treated physically, with enzymes or chemically so that they thicken and hold up to heating, freezing or acidity better than ordinary starch.
  • E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Firming agent Firming agents keep fruit and vegetable tissue crisp or firm through processing and storage.
  • 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.
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.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • 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.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
  • Sauce A prepared sauce used as an ingredient.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 84 frozen ready-made meals

From least to most processed, this one ranks 70th. 69% of the frozen ready-made meals 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 84 frozen ready-made meals, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5060262487150, 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.
  • 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.