Is Tesco Mincemeat ultra-processed?

Sweet spreads Sold in the United Kingdom 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
Fructose
E150a Plain caramel

21 ingredients
4 additives
Nutri-Score D

Less processed sweet spreads

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

Ingredients Vine Fruits 32% (Sultanas, Currants, Raisins), Apple 21%, Sugar (processing marker), Glucose-Fructose Syrup Candied Mixed Peel 3%, Vegetable Suet (processing marker), Mixed Spices, Acetic Acid, Plain Caramel (ultra-processing marker), Ascorbic Acid, Peel, Glucose-Fructose Syrup (ultra-processing marker), Sugar (processing marker), Lemon Peel, Citric Acid, Vegetable Suet contains (processing marker) (Palm Oil), Rice Flour, Sunflower Oil (processing marker)

Additives: E150a Plain caramel , E260 Acetic acid , E300 Ascorbic acid , E330 Citric acid

As written on the pack

Ingredients Vine Fruits (32%) (Sultanas, Currants, Raisins), Apple (21%), Sugar, Glucose-Fructose Syrup Candied Mixed Peel (3%), Vegetable Suet, Mixed Spices, Preservative (Acetic Acid), Colour (Plain Caramel), Antioxidant (Ascorbic Acid). Candied Mixed Peel contains: Orange Peel, Glucose-Fructose Syrup, Sugar, Lemon Peel, Citric Acid. Vegetable Suet contains: Palm Oil, Rice Flour, Sunflower Oil.

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.

E150a Plain caramel Plain caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars.

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.
Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.

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.

Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
Vegetable fat Vegetable fats are oils that are solid at room temperature, such as palm or coconut fat.
Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 671 sweet spreads

From least to most processed, this one ranks 578th. 68% of the sweet spreads 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 671 sweet spreads, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000119085894, last edited 24 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 D (from A, best, to E).
General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.