How can I recognise ultra-processed foods?

What do chicken nuggets, margarine and instant noodles all have in common? Well, they may look tasty, but they’re loaded with sugar, salt, fat and chemicals that strip away their nutritional value. That’s due to the heavy processing that goes into making them, which sees them completely transformed from the original raw ingredients. 

And they’re increasingly ever present on our shelves and in our stomachs. In 2022, the National Institute for Health and Care Research found that ultra-processed foods made up almost two-thirds of Britain’s school meals. Furthermore, the British Medical Journal has reported that ultra-processed foods account for 56.8% of total energy intake in the UK diet.

Can you identify them by looking at the ingredient lists on product packaging? What’s the difference between processed foods and ultra-processed foods? Why should we limit the consumption of ultra-processed products? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.

In partnership with upday UK.

First broadcast: 11/06/2023

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