Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Trader Joe's Toffee chips ultra-processed?

8 OZ (227g) Chocolate candies Sold in the United States

Pack of Trader Joe's Toffee chips

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:

  • 23 ingredients
  • 2 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed chocolate candies

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

sugar, butter (cream, salt), dark chocolate (sugar, chocolate liquor processed with alkali, cocoa butter, soy lecithin (an emulsifier), natural vanilla flavor), milk chocolate (sugar, cocoa butter, milk, chocolate liquor, soy lecithin (an emulsifier), natural vanilla flavor), soy lecithin, natural butter flavor, salt, natural vanilla flavor

Additives: E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin

As written on the pack

SUGAR, BUTTER (CREAM, SALT), DARK CHOCOLATE (SUGAR, CHOCOLATE LIQUOR PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, COCOA BUTTER, SOY LECITHIN [AN EMULSIFIER], NATURAL VANILLA FLAVOR), MILK CHOCOLATE (SUGAR, COCOA BUTTER, MILK, CHOCOLATE LIQUOR, SOY LECITHIN [AN EMULSIFIER], NATURAL VANILLA FLAVOR), SOY LECITHIN, NATURAL BUTTER FLAVOR, SALT, NATURAL VANILLA FLAVOR.

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.

  • E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
  • Emulsifier Emulsifiers keep fat and water from separating, giving products a smooth, stable texture over a long shelf life.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.
5 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.

  • Butter Butter, the fat churned from cream.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • 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.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 773 chocolate candies

From least to most processed, this one ranks 309th. 91% of the chocolate candies 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 773 chocolate candies, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00550871, last edited 31 July 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 E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.