Is Trader Joe's Turkey Meatballs ultra-processed?

16 oz Meat preparations 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:

Glucose
Soya flour

18 ingredients
No additives
Nutri-Score C

Less processed meat preparations

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

Turkey Meat, Water, Seasonings (Soy Flour (ultra-processing marker), Bread Crumbs (Wheat Flour, Sugar (processing marker), Salt (processing marker), Yeast), Soy Protein, Corn Syrup Solids (ultra-processing marker), Salt (processing marker), Dehydrated Onion, Spices, Garlic Powder, Parsley), Turkey, Onion

As written on the pack

Turkey Meat, Water, Seasonings (Textured Soy Flour, Bread Crumbs (Wheat Flour, Sugar, Salt, Yeast), Soy Protein Concentrate, Corn Syrup Solids, Salt, Dehydrated Onion, Spices, Garlic Powder, Parsley), Mechanically Separated Turkey, Onion

What makes it ultra-processed

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.

Glucose Glucose, usually listed as glucose syrup, is cheap, keeps products moist and stops sugar from crystallising.
Soya flour 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.

Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 314 meat preparations

From least to most processed, this one ranks 153rd. 72% of the meat preparations 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 314 meat preparations, least processed first

About this information

Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 00449205, last edited 2 October 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.