Is Starburst ultra-processed?
Yes, it's ultra-processed
- 1 Unprocessed
- 2 Kitchen staple
- 3 Processed
- 4 Ultra-processed
Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:
- 26 ingredients
- 10 additives
- Nutri-Score E
Less processed candies
Ingredients
Ultra-processing Processing
glucose syrup (ultra-processing marker), sugar (processing marker), palm fat, fruit juices 1.4% (apple, orange, blackcurrant, strawberry, lime, lemon), acid (citric acid), modified starch (ultra-processing marker), acid (malic acid), dextrin (ultra-processing marker), flavourings (ultra-processing marker), maltodextrin (ultra-processing marker), antioxidant (ascorbic acid), emulsifier (ultra-processing marker) (lecithin (ultra-processing marker)), colours (ultra-processing marker) (anthocyanins (ultra-processing marker), beta-carotene (ultra-processing marker)), spirulina extract
Additives: E1400 Dextrin , E14XX Modified Starch , E160a Carotene , E160ai Beta-carotene , E163 Anthocyanins , E296 Malic acid , E300 Ascorbic acid , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E330 Citric acid
As written on the pack
glucose syrup, sugar, palm fat, concentrated fruit juices 1,4%** (apple, orange, blackcurrant, strawberry, lime, lemon), acid (citric acid), modified starch, acid (malic acid), dextrin, flavourings, maltodextrin, antioxidant (ascorbic acid), emulsifier (lecithin), colours (anthocyanins, beta-carotene), spirulina extract,
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.
- E1400 Dextrin Dextrin is starch partly broken down by heat or acid, used as a thickener, binder and coating.
- 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.
- E160a Carotene Carotenes are orange-yellow pigments, either synthesised or extracted from carrots, algae or palm oil.
- E163 Anthocyanins Colours are substances which add or restore colour in a food, and include natural constituents of foods and natural sources which are normally not consumed as foods as such and not normally used as characteristic ingredients of food.
- E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
- Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
Show 3 more
- 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.
- 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.
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.
- Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
- Glucose syrup Glucose syrup is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
- Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
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.
Among 486 candies
From least to most processed, this one ranks 451st. 96% of the candies here are ultra-processed.
About this information
- Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 4009900546249, last edited 24 July 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 E (from A, best, to E).
- General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.