What is an ultra-processed food?
A shorter ingredient list also means the product is less likely to be an ultra-processed food.
This products made using industrial processes that combine multiple ingredients, often including colours, flavours and other additives. They are hyperpalatable, packaged and designed for convenience.
Ultra-processed foods often have long ingredient lists, due to added sugars (such as dextrose), modified oils, protein sources (for example, soya protein isolate) and – such as colours, flavours and thickeners.
Some examples of ultra-processed foods with long ingredient lists include:
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meal-replacement drinks
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plant-based meat imitations
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some commercial bakery items, including cookies or cakes
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instant noodle snacks
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energy or performance drinks.
If a food is and it’s more likely to be an ultra-processed food – a created product, rather than a whole food that hasn’t changed much since the farm.
Nutrition is more than a number
Choosing products with a shorter ingredient list can work as a general rule of thumb. But other factors matter too.
The length of an ingredient list doesn’t tell us anything about the food’s nutritional content, so it’s important to consider the type of ingredients as well.
Remember that items are listed in order of their ingoing weight, so if sugar is second or third on the list, there is probably a fair bit of added sugar.
For instance, a food product may have only a few ingredients, but if the first, second or third is a type of fat, oil or sugar, then it may not be an ideal choice for every day.
You can also check the nutrition information panel. Use the “per serve” column to check the nutrients you’d get from eating one serve of the food. If you want to compare the amount of a nutrient in two different foods, it’s best to look at the per 100g/mL column.
Some examples of foods with relatively short ingredient lists but high amounts of added fats and sugars include:
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potato crisps
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chocolate
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soft drink.
Alcoholic beverages such as beer or wine may also have only a few ingredients, but this does not mean that they should be consumed every day.
