Is Swiss Miss Hot Cocoa Mix ultra-processed?

Dehydrated beverages Sold in the United States and France

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Glucose
Whey
Cocoa
E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
E950 Acesulfame k
E955 Sucralose

12 ingredients
5 additives

Less processed dehydrated beverages

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

sugar (processing marker), corn syrup (ultra-processing marker), whey (ultra-processing marker), cocoa (ultra-processing marker), hydrogenated coconut oil (processing marker), nonfat milk, less than 2% of (salt (processing marker)), dipotassium phosphate, mono- and DIGLYCERIDES (ultra-processing marker), acesulfame potassium (ultra-processing marker), sucralose (ultra-processing marker)

Additives: E340 Potassium phosphates , E340ii Dipotassium phosphate , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E950 Acesulfame k , E955 Sucralose

As written on the pack

SUGAR, CORN SYRUP, MODIFIED WHEY, COCOA (PROCESSED WITH ALKALI), HYDROGENATED COCONUT OIL, NONFAT MILK, LESS THAN 2% OF: SALT, DIPOTASSIUM PHOSPHATE, MONO - AND DIGLYCERIDES, ACESULFAME POTASSIUM, SUCRALOSE, ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR CONTAINS: MILK.

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.

E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids are made from fats and glycerol.
E950 Acesulfame k Acesulfame K is a synthetic sweetener about 200 times sweeter than sugar, often combined with aspartame or sucralose.
E955 Sucralose Sucralose is a sweetener made by chlorinating sugar.

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.
Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
Cocoa An ingredient mostly produced industrially and rarely used in home kitchens.

3 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.

Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 60 dehydrated beverages

From least to most processed, this one ranks 47th. 88% of the dehydrated beverages 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 60 dehydrated beverages, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0070920474915, last edited 29 August 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.