NOT ALL ULTRA-PROCESSED FOODS ARE CREATED EQUAL

Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) have become nutrition’s latest villain. Social media tells us to avoid them. Headlines link them to obesity, heart disease and diabetes. Some shoppers are even choosing foods based on their NOVA classification rather than the Nutrition Information/Facts Panel. The conversation has sparked important awareness about food/diet quality. But like any classification system, the UPF descriptor doesn’t always tell the whole story.

 

Take a stroll down the freezer aisle and you’ll find a variety of healthy frozen convenience meals with meat/poultry/seafood and colourful vegetables. They look nothing like soft drink, confectionery or packaged snacks. Yet under the NOVA classification, they could all end up in the same category: ultra-processed foods. That raises an important question. Is the UPF descriptor really telling us how healthy a food is?

 

Under the NOVA classification, this meal would be considered ultra-processed because it contains several ingredients regarded as “industrial formulations” or cosmetic additives:

 

 

Cooked rice (water, rice), water, chicken (12%) (chicken, potato starch, milk solids, salt, soy protein, dextrose, water), cabbage, carrots, celery, onions, beans, cashews (3%), thickener (1422), salt, sugar, yeast extract, wheat starch, spices, herbs, canola oil, honey, soy sauce (soy, wheat), garlic. 

Source: product label.

 

 

A frozen Chinese Chicken and Cashew meal available in my local supermarket contains cooked rice, chicken, carrots, cabbage, green beans, celery, onions and cashews. It provides a moderate amount of energy, lean protein, a generous serve of vegetables and a few nuts. Thanks to its combination of rice, vegetables, chicken and cashews, it’s also likely to have a moderate glycaemic impact. Yet because it also contains ingredients such as modified starch (1422), yeast extract, soy protein and potato starch, it would almost certainly be classified as an ultra-processed food.

 

At first glance, those ingredient names can sound alarming. But what are they doing? Modified starch helps the sauce remain smooth after freezing and reheating. Yeast extract provides savoury ‘umami’ flavour, allowing manufacturers to rely less on added salt. Soy protein helps maintain the texture of the chicken while contributing additional high-quality protein.

 

These are technological ingredients rather than culinary ones. Importantly, they are approved by food safety authorities and are not considered harmful when consumed as part of a normal balanced diet.

 

 

Rather than asking, “Is this food ultra-processed?“, perhaps we should be asking:

For many people, the alternative to a frozen meal isn’t preparing a home-cooked stir-fry from scratch. It’s ordering home delivered pizza or driving through a fast-food outlet on the way home from work. Viewed in that context, a frozen meal containing vegetables, lean protein and rice may be a very practical way to eat well.

 

 

One of the scientific criticisms of the current UPF definition is that it focuses primarily on how a food is manufactured or what ingredients it contains rather than what the food contributes nutritionally. Foods with very different nutritional qualities can have the same UPF classification. A vegetable-rich frozen meal, a sugary soft drink and a packet of confectionery may all be classified as ultra-processed, despite having vastly different nutrient profiles and likely health effects.

 

Likewise, several foods that nutrition professionals often recommend including fortified soy beverages, some wholegrain breakfast cereals, high-fibre packaged breads and infant formula can also be classified as UPFs because of the ingredients or manufacturing processes involved.

This doesn’t mean processing is irrelevant. Many ultra-processed foods are indeed high in added sugars or starches, saturated fat and sodium while providing relatively few beneficial nutrients. But it does suggest that processing alone is a blunt tool for judging whether a food belongs in a healthy dietary pattern.

 

 

A convenient meal based on grains, vegetables and lean protein – even if it contains a few functional ingredients to improve food safety, texture or shelf life – may still be a healthier choice than a freshly cooked restaurant meal high in kilojoules/calories, salt and saturated or trans fats. Convenience matters too. Frozen meals reduce food waste, last for months in the freezer and can help people with busy lifestyles, limited cooking skills or reduced mobility enjoy a balanced meal in minutes. This example frozen Chinese Chicken and Cashew was also affordably priced at AU$4.50; not bad in a cost-of-living crisis.  Many packaged foods considered UPFs are good carbs, such as sliced wholegrain bread, flavoured yoghurt, muesli and wholegrain breakfast cereals. In other words, convenience can support healthy eating and not undermine it.

 

 

The NOVA classification has helped shine a spotlight on the modern food supply and encouraged valuable conversations about diet quality. But no single label can capture the full nutritional value of a food. Rather than relying solely on whether a product is classified as ultra-processed, it’s worth considering the bigger picture: the ingredients, nutrient profile, Health Star Rating/Traffic Lights/Nutri-Score/etc…, glycaemic impact, portion size and, perhaps most importantly, the role the food plays in the overall diet.

 

When it comes to healthy eating, context counts. Sometimes, the healthiest choice isn’t the least processed one, but the one that helps you put a balanced meal on the table.