Is it ultra-processed?
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Is The Smart Choice Fudge Bar ultra-processed?

Frozen desserts Sold in the United States

Pack of The Smart Choice Fudge Bar

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:

  • 13 ingredients
  • 3 additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed frozen desserts

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

Whole Milk, Skim Milk, Tapioca Syrup (Tapioca Starch, Water), Cane Sugar, Cocoa, Whey, Pectin, Locust Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Sugar, Vanilla Extract

Additives: E410 Locust bean gum , E412 Guar gum , E440 Pectins

As written on the pack

Organic Whole Milk, Organic Skim Milk, Organic Tapioca Syrup (Organic Tapioca Starch, Water), Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Cocoa (processed with alkali), Organic Dried Whey, Stabilizer (Pectin, Organic Locust Bean Gum, Organic Guar Gum, Standardized with Organic Sugar), Organic Vanilla Extract. CONTAINS: MILK

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.

  • E410 Locust bean gum Locust bean gum (carob gum) is a thickener and stabiliser from the seeds of the carob tree.
  • E412 Guar gum Guar gum is a thickener ground from the seeds of the guar plant.
  • E440 Pectins Pectins are gelling agents extracted from citrus peel or apple pomace.

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.

  • Whey Whey is the liquid left over from cheese making, usually dried into a powder and used as a cheap source of milk solids, protein and lactose.
  • Cocoa An ingredient mostly produced industrially and rarely used in home kitchens.
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.

  • Starch Starch extracted from cereals or potatoes, used to thicken.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 485 frozen desserts

From least to most processed, this one ranks 170th. 91% of the frozen desserts 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 485 frozen desserts, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0072655409323, last edited 9 August 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 C (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.