Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Tesco Cheese and Onion Sandwich ultra-processed?

Cheese sandwiches Sold in the United Kingdom and France

Pack of Tesco Cheese and Onion Sandwich

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:

  • 30 ingredients
  • 5 additives
  • Nutri-Score D

Less processed cheese sandwiches

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, Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin, Water, Cheddar Cheese, Red Leicester Cheese (Annatto Norbixin), Onion, Rapeseed Oil, Oatmeal, Oats, Wheat Bran, Cornflour, Full Fat Soft Cheese, White Wine Vinegar, Pasteurised Egg Yolk, Salt, Yeast, Wheat Gluten, Spirit Vinegar, mono- and DiGlycerides of Fatty Acids, mono- and DiAcetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of mono- and DiGlycerides of Fatty Acids, Muscovado Sugar, Mustard Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Palm Oil, Ascorbic Acid

Additives: E160b Annatto , E160bii Annatto norbixin , E300 Ascorbic acid , E471 Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids , E472e Mono- and diacetyltartaric acid esters of mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids

As written on the pack

Wheat Flour [Wheat Flour, Calcium Carbonate, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Water, Cheddar Cheese (Milk) (12%), Red Leicester Cheese (with Colour: Annatto Norbixin) (Milk) (12%), Onion, Rapeseed Oil, Oatmeal, Oats, Wheat Bran, Cornflour, Full Fat Soft Cheese (Milk), White Wine Vinegar, Pasteurised Egg Yolk, Salt, Yeast, Wheat Gluten, Spirit Vinegar, Emulsifiers (Mono - and Di-Glycerides of Fatty Acids, Mono - and Di-Acetyl Tartaric Acid Esters of Mono - and Di-Glycerides of Fatty Acids), Muscovado Sugar, Mustard Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Palm Oil, Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic Acid).

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.

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.

  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Sandwiches Products in the category "Sandwiches" are at least group 3.
  • Cheese Cheese is milk preserved with salt, cultures and rennet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 20 cheese sandwiches

From least to most processed, this one ranks 9th. 90% of the cheese sandwiches 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 20 cheese sandwiches, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 03022177, last edited 26 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 D (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.