Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Waitrose Seriously zesty lemon curd ultra-processed?

325g Lemon curds Sold in the United Kingdom

Pack of Waitrose Seriously zesty lemon curd

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:

  • 10 ingredients
  • 2 additives

Less processed lemon curds

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, free range egg 20%, salted butter 20%, lemon 8%, water, lemon zest 1%, lemon oil, gelling agent (agar), preservative

Additives: E220 Sulphur dioxide , E406 Agar

As written on the pack

Sugar, pasteurised free range egg (20%), salted butter (20%) (milk), lemon concentrate (8%), water, lemon zest (1%), lemon oil, gelling agent agar, preservative sulphur dioxide.

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.

  • E406 Agar A food additive used to dissolve, dilute, disperse or otherwise physically modify a food additive or nutrient without altering its function -and without exerting any technological effect itself- in order to facilitate its handling, application or use of the food additive or nutrient.
  • Gelling agent Gelling agents such as pectin, gelatine or carrageenan set liquids into gels and stabilise textures.
3 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.
  • Preservative Preservatives slow spoilage by microbes.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 11 lemon curds

From least to most processed, this one ranks 6th. 82% of the lemon curds 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 11 lemon curds, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 5000169134238, 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.
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.