Custard flavour doughnuts
Unknown brand
Processing
4
Ultra-processed
Group 4 of 4 on the NOVA scale
Additives listed
9
1 we grade moderate or higher
5 of them not yet assessed here
Nutrients
–
Nothing above the low band
Or no figures recorded at all
Three separate readings, kept apart on purpose. This is not a score, and none of it says this product is harmful.
Additives (9)
This label lists 3 colours, 2 raising agents, 1 antioxidant, 1 emulsifier and 1 thickener or gelling agent. 1 more we cannot place from the code alone.
E171
Titanium dioxide
Whitener and opacifier
What it is. A bright white pigment used to make sweets, icing, sauces and coatings look opaque and white.
Why it is used. Purely cosmetic. It changes appearance, not taste or safety of the food.
What the evidence says. In 2021 the EU food safety body EFSA concluded it could no longer be considered safe as a food additive, mainly because possible genetic damage from the tiny particles could not be ruled out. That is a precautionary call rather than proof of harm in people.
Banned as a food additive in the EU since 2022. Still permitted in the UK and the US, which reached different conclusions on the same evidence. A clear case of the same additive, different rules.
Assessed against EFSA, UK FSA, US FDA. Full entry for E171
E471
Mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids
Emulsifier
What it is. Fat derived emulsifiers, closely related to ordinary dietary fats.
Why it is used. One of the most used additives in food: bread, margarine, ice cream, cakes and sauces.
What the evidence says. The body handles these much as it handles other fats, and EFSA's re-evaluation raised no safety concern at the levels used. They sit in the same broad emulsifier and gut microbiome research question as the others, which remains unsettled.
Permitted without a numerical limit. The fat source is not always stated, which matters for some diets rather than for safety.
Assessed against EFSA. Full entry for E471
E160A
Carotenes
Yellow to orange colour
What it is. The orange pigments found in carrots and other vegetables, either extracted or made synthetically.
Why it is used. Colours margarine, soft drinks, dairy, and sweets.
What the evidence says. The same compound the body turns into vitamin A, and safe at the levels used in food. High dose beta-carotene supplements have been linked to harm in smokers, but those doses are far above anything a colour in food delivers, and conflating the two is a common mistake.
Permitted. The supplement findings apply to concentrated doses, not to food colouring.
Assessed against EFSA, JECFA. Full entry for E160A
E300
Ascorbic acid (vitamin C)
Antioxidant
What it is. Vitamin C, added to protect colour and flavour and sometimes to fortify.
Why it is used. Stops browning in juices and cut fruit, protects fats, and boosts vitamin content.
What the evidence says. Beneficial and harmless at the levels used. Included here as a reminder that an E number is just a code, and plenty of them are ordinary nutrients.
Permitted freely, no concern.
Assessed against EFSA, JECFA. Full entry for E300
Also on the label, not assessed here yet
- E170 Calcium carbonate colour
- E440 Pectin thickener
- E450 Diphosphates raising agent
- E462 No entry in our register
- E500 Sodium carbonates raising agent
Names and jobs come from the register of additives permitted in Great Britain, which we have not finished transcribing: a code shown without a name is a gap in our coverage, not a finding that it is unapproved. Naming one is not grading it either. Full detail appears only where we have an assessment against a named authority, so all of this describes our coverage rather than these additives. Most are common and low concern.
Ingredients
Colours (Titanium dioxide, Mixed carotenes), all doughnuts with custard flavour filling. INGREDIENTS: Fortified wheat flour (wheat our, calcium carbonate, iron, niacin, thiamin), 'ater, Sugar, Palm oil, Rapeseed oil, Dextrose, east, Emulsifiers (Mono - and diglycerides of itty acids, Mono - and diacetyltartaric acid ters of mono - and diglycerides of fatty acids, orbitan monostearate), Glucose syrup, Maize arch, Wheat gluten, Raising Agents Diphosphates, Sodium bicarbonate, Calcium 10sphates), Salt, Cornflour, Stabiliser (Carboxy ethyl cellulose), Gelling Agent (Pectins), 1ouring, Acidity Regulator Aucono-delta-lactone), Preservative (Sorbic id), Flour Treatment Agent (Ascorbic acid).
As printed on the pack, in the producer's own order: ingredients are listed by weight, so what comes first is most of what is in it. E numbers link to their assessment where we have one.