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Is Tesco Vegetable Cup Soup with Croutons ultra-processed?

5x23g Dehydrated soups Sold in the United Kingdom and Ireland

Pack of Tesco Vegetable Cup Soup with Croutons

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:

  • 31 ingredients
  • 1 additive

Less processed dehydrated soups

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

maltodextrin, potato starch, palm oil, croutons 10% (wheat flour, palm oil, salt, yeast, antioxidant (extracts of rosemary)), vegetable powders 9% (potato, carrot, onion, leek), flavourings (contain wheat), dried vegetables 3.5% (carrot, peas, onion), salt, sugar, milk sugar, milk proteins, parsley, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin, recycling 1.1g k contains 5 servings erence intake of an average adult ookj

Additives: E392 Extracts of rosemary

As written on the pack

maltodextrin, potato starch, palm oil, croutons (10%) [ wheat flour, palm oil, salt, yeast, antioxidant (extracts of rosemary)], vegetable powders (9%) [potato, carrot, onion, leek], flavourings (contain wheat), dried vegetables (3.5%) [carrot. peas. onion], salt, sugar, milk sugar, milk proteins. dried parsley, ground black pepper wheat flour contains: wheat flour calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin. 2.2g recycling 1.1g k contains 5 servings erence intake of an average adult ookj/

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.

  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.

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.

  • Lactose Lactose is milk sugar, crystallised industrially from whey, a by-product of cheese making.
  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
  • Milk proteins Milk proteins are proteins separated from milk, such as caseinates and whey protein concentrates, added to adjust texture or raise protein content.
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.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 55 dehydrated soups

From least to most processed, this one ranks 23rd. 84% of the dehydrated soups 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 55 dehydrated soups, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5057373815651, last edited 7 April 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.