Is Tesco Mild Salsa ultra-processed?

300 g Dips Sold in the United Kingdom and Ireland

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Modified starch

13 ingredients
No additives
Nutri-Score A

Less processed dips

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

Tomato 56%, Tomato Purée, Onion 10%, Green Pepper 7%, Modified Maize Starch (ultra-processing marker), Spirit Vinegar, Salt (processing marker), Coriander Leaf, Garlic Purée, Jalapeño Chilli, Chilli, Cumin, Black Pepper

As written on the pack

Tomato (56%), Tomato Purée, Onion (10%), Green Pepper (7%), Modified Maize Starch, Spirit Vinegar, Salt, Coriander Leaf, Garlic Purée, Jalapeño Chilli, Chilli Powder, Cumin, Black Pepper.

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.

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.

2 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.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 433 dips

From least to most processed, this one ranks 263rd. 43% of the dips 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 433 dips, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5051008205732, last edited 4 June 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.