Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Waitrose Medium Egg Noodles ultra-processed?

250g Egg noodles Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Waitrose Medium Egg Noodles

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:

  • 16 ingredients
  • 7 additives
  • Nutri-Score A

Less processed egg noodles

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

fortified wheat flour (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), water, free range egg 4%, salt, firming agents (potassium carbonate, sodium carbonate), acidity regulator (citric acid), colour (beta-carotene)

Additives: E160a Carotene , E160ai Beta-carotene , E330 Citric acid , E500 Sodium carbonates , E500i Sodium carbonate , E501 Potassium carbonates , E501i Potassium carbonate

As written on the pack

FORTIFIED WHEAT FLOUR (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin). water, pasteurised free range egg (4%), salt, firming agents potassium carbonate and sodium carbonate, acidity regulator citric acid, colour beta-carotene.

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.

  • E160a Carotene Carotenes are orange-yellow pigments, either synthesised or extracted from carrots, algae or palm oil.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Firming agent Firming agents keep fruit and vegetable tissue crisp or firm through processing and storage.
1 ingredient 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.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 30 egg noodles

From least to most processed, this one ranks 27th. 50% of the egg noodles 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 30 egg noodles, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000169008393, last edited 12 May 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.