Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Tesco Curly Fries ultra-processed?

700g Frozen fried potatoes Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Tesco Curly Fries

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:

  • 21 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score A

Less processed frozen fried potatoes

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

potato 79%, sunflower oil, maize flour, modified potato starch, rice flour, maize starch, garlic, onion, salt, chilli pepper, paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper, cumin, turmeric, yeast extract, raising agent (disodium diphosphate), dextrose, paprika extract, black pepper extract

Additives: E160c Paprika extract , E450 Diphosphates , E450i Disodium diphosphate

As written on the pack

potato (79%), sunflower oil, maize flour, modified potato starch, rice flour, maize starch, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, chilli pepper, paprika, cayenne pepper, black pepper, cumin, turmeric, yeast extract, raising agent (disodium diphosphate), dextrose, paprika extract, black pepper 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.

  • E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.
  • E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.
  • 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.

  • Dextrose Dextrose is pure glucose crystallised from starch-derived syrup.
  • Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
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.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 104 frozen fried potatoes

From least to most processed, this one ranks 87th. 80% of the frozen fried potatoes 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 104 frozen fried potatoes, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5053526799731, 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 A (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.