Is Waitrose Chunky Haddock Fish Fingers ultra-processed?

340 g Fish fingers Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Waitrose Chunky Haddock Fish Fingers

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:

  • 22 ingredients
  • 1 additive
  • Nutri-Score A

Less processed fish fingers

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

Haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus), fortified wheat flour (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), rapeseed oil, cornflour, durum wheat semolina, water, salt (processing marker), wheat gluten (ultra-processing marker), yeast, yeast extract, onion, garlic, black pepper extract, colour (ultra-processing marker) (paprika extract (ultra-processing marker)), sunflower oil (processing marker)

Additives: E160c Paprika extract

As written on the pack

Haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) (fish) (63%), fortified wheat flour (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), rapeseed oil, cornflour, durum wheat semolina, water, salt, wheat gluten, yeast, yeast extract, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper extract, colour (paprika extract), sunflower oil

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.

  • E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.

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.

  • Gluten Wheat gluten, sold as "vital wheat gluten", is the protein washed out of wheat flour.
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.
  • Vegetable oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 63 fish fingers

From least to most processed, this one ranks 42nd. 63% of the fish fingers 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 63 fish fingers, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000169604175, last edited 27 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 A (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.