Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Trader Joe's Penne Arrabbiata ultra-processed?

16 oz Pastas Sold in the United States

Pack of Trader Joe's Penne Arrabbiata

It's processed, but not ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Whole foods combined with:

  • 17 ingredients
  • No additives
  • Nutri-Score C

Less processed pastas

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

Parcooked Macaroni Pasta (Water, Durum Wheat Semolina, Salt), Tomato Juice, Water, Tomato, Onion, Sunflower Seed Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Salt, Sugar, Wheat Starch, Parsley, Garlic, Chili Pepper, White Pepper

As written on the pack

Parcooked Macaroni Pasta (Water, Durum Wheat Semolina, Salt), Tomato Juice, Water, Tomato, Onion, Sunflower Seed Oil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Salt, Sugar, Wheat Starch, Parsley, Garlic, Chili Pepper, White Pepper. CONTAINS WHEAT.

What makes it processed

Culinary ingredients

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.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

Category rules

Open Food Facts puts every product in this category in at least this group.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 999 pastas

From least to most processed, this one ranks 420th. 51% of the pastas 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 999 pastas, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00878135, last edited 24 September 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.