Is Trader Joe's Tiny Fruity Cuties Cereal ultra-processed?

16 oz Puffed cereals Sold in the United States

Yes, it's ultra-processed

1 Unprocessed
2 Kitchen staple
3 Processed
4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

Colour
Flavouring

23 ingredients
1 additive
Nutri-Score D

Less processed puffed cereals

Thin Brown Rice Cakes Red Rice & Quinoa Lundberg Family Farms 3 ingredients · no additives NOVA group 1
Crispy Rice Toasted Rice Cereal Gluten Free Millville 21 ingredients · no additives NOVA group 3
Puffed oats Rude Health 1 ingredient · no additives NOVA group 1
Organic wholegrain puffed rice cereal Kallø 1 ingredient · no additives NOVA group 1

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

corn flour, cane sugar (processing marker), degermed yellow corn meal, oat flour, canola, sunflower oil (processing marker), sea salt (processing marker), calcium carbonate, vegetable juice (color (ultra-processing marker)), natural flavors (ultra-processing marker), VITAMIN and MINERAL BLEND (ferric orthophosphate, niacinamide, zinc oxide, thiamine hydrochloride, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid), mixed tocopherols (to preserve), annatto (color (ultra-processing marker))

Additives: E306 Tocopherol-rich extract

As written on the pack

CORN FLOUR, CANE SUGAR, DEGERMED YELLOW CORN MEAL, OAT FLOUR, CANOLA AND/OR SUNFLOWER OIL, SEA SALT, CALCIUM CARBONATE, VEGETABLE JUICE (COLOR), NATURAL FLAVORS, VITAMIN AND MINERAL BLEND (FERRIC ORTHOPHOSPHATE, NIACINAMIDE, ZINC OXIDE, THIAMINE HYDROCHLORIDE, CALCIUM PANTOTHENATE, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE, FOLIC ACID), MIXED TOCOPHEROLS (TO PRESERVE), ANNATTO EXTRACT (COLOR)

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.

Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.

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.

Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.
Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 37 puffed cereals

From least to most processed, this one ranks 27th. 46% of the puffed cereals 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 37 puffed cereals, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00744379, last edited 4 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.