Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Waitrose Mince Pies ultra-processed?

Cakes Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Waitrose Mince Pies

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:

  • 59 ingredients
  • 10 additives
  • Nutri-Score E

Less processed cakes

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

mincemeat 53% (sugar, mixed vine fruits (sultanas, raisins, currants), apple purée, vegetable glycerol, candles mixed peel (orange peel, glucose fructose syrup, sugar, lemon peel, citric acid), glacé cherries (cherries, glucose-fructose syrup, sugar, citric acid, anthocyanins), apricot purée (apricot, ascorbic acid), rapeseed oil, cornflour, mixed peel (orange peel, glucose-fructose syrup, sugar, lemon peel, citric acid), acetic acid, cinnamon, plain caramel, nutmeg, sunflower oil, pectin, lemon oil, orange oil), wheat flour (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), butter, sugar, rice flour, salt, disodium diphosphate, sodium hydrogen carbonate, including cereals containing gluten, may be eaten hot and cold, oven heat gas 3, 160°c, fan 140°c 8-9 mins preheat oven, remove all packaging, place pies on a baking tray and heat in centre of oven, energy k energy kcal fat

Additives: E150a Plain caramel , E160 Carotenoids , E163 Anthocyanins , E260 Acetic acid , E300 Ascorbic acid , E330 Citric acid , E422 Glycerol , E440 Pectins , E450 Diphosphates , E450i Disodium diphosphate

Also detected, but not matched to one ingredient: E160 Carotenoids, E422 Glycerol.

As written on the pack

mincemeat (53%) (sugar, mixed vine fruits [sultanas, raisins, currants], apple purée, humectant (vegetable glycerol), candles mixed peel (orange peel, glucose fructose syrup, sugar, lemon peel, citric acid), glacé cherries [cherries, glucose-fructose syrup, sugar, acidity regulator (citric acid), colour (anthocyanins)], apricot purée [apricot, acidity regulator (ascorbic acid)], rapeseed oil, cornflour, candied mixed peel [orange peel, glucose-fructose syrup, sugar, lemon peel, acidity regulator (citric acid)], acidity regulator (acetic acid), cinnamon, colour (plain caramel), nutmeg, sunflower oil, gelling agent (pectin), lemon oil, orange oil), wheat flour (wheat flour, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), butter (milk) (14%), sugar, rice flour, salt, raising agents (disodium diphosphate, sodium hydrogen carbonate) allergy advice: for allergens, including cereals containing gluten, see ingredients in bold. may contain nuts may be eaten hot or cold. oven heat gas 3, 160°c, fan 140°c 8-9 mins preheat oven. remove all packaging. place pies on a baking tray and heat in centre of oven. energy k energy kcal fat

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.

  • E150a Plain caramel Plain caramel is a brown colour made by heating sugars.
  • E160 Carotenoids A food additive authorised for industrial food production.
  • E163 Anthocyanins Colours are substances which add or restore colour in a food, and include natural constituents of foods and natural sources which are normally not consumed as foods as such and not normally used as characteristic ingredients of food.
  • E422 Glycerol Glycerol is a sweet-tasting liquid used to keep products moist and soft.
  • E440 Pectins Pectins are gelling agents extracted from citrus peel or apple pomace.
  • E450 Diphosphates Diphosphates are phosphate salts used as raising agents in baking powder, and to hold water in processed meats and cheese.

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.
  • Fructose Fructose is the sugar found naturally in fruit and honey, but as an ingredient it is refined industrially, mostly from corn starch.
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 oil Vegetable oils are pressed or extracted from seeds, nuts and fruits.
  • Sweet snacks Products in the category "Sweet snacks" are at least group 3.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 377 cakes

From least to most processed, this one ranks 235th. 94% of the cakes 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 377 cakes, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000169632079, 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 E (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.