Meat Feast Pasta
Processing
4
Ultra-processed
Group 4 of 4 on the NOVA scale
Additives listed
7
1 we grade moderate or higher
4 of them not yet assessed here
Salt per 100g
0.73g
Medium
UK FSA front of pack threshold
Three separate readings, kept apart on purpose. This is not a score, and none of it says this product is harmful.
Additives (7)
This label lists 3 antioxidants, 1 acidity regulator, 1 colour, 1 preservative and 1 sweetener.
E250
Sodium nitrite
Preservative and colour fixer, cured meats
What it is. A curing salt that keeps cured and processed meats pink and stops the growth of the bacteria behind botulism.
Why it is used. Used in bacon, ham, salami and hot dogs for preservation, safety and colour.
What the evidence says. The concern is not the additive in isolation but processed meat as a whole, which the WHO's cancer agency IARC classes as Group 1, meaning there is sufficient evidence it causes colorectal cancer. Nitrite can form nitrosamines during curing and cooking, and those are the likely culprit. Risk rises with how much processed meat you eat over time.
Permitted with strict maximum levels. The EU cut the allowed limits further from 2023 to reduce nitrosamine formation.
Assessed against IARC, EFSA, UK FSA. Full entry for E250
E955
Sucralose
Artificial sweetener
What it is. An intense sweetener made from sugar, around 600 times sweeter, so it is used in very small amounts.
Why it is used. Sweetens diet drinks, tabletop sweeteners, dairy and baked goods.
What the evidence says. Regulators have treated it as safe for decades and the acceptable daily intake has not changed. Newer laboratory work on a breakdown product, and the general question of sweeteners and the gut microbiome, keep it under discussion, but that work is early and has not moved any official position.
Permitted with an acceptable daily intake in all three regions.
Assessed against EFSA, JECFA. Full entry for E955
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
- E160C Paprika extract, capsanthin colour
- E316 Sodium erythorbate antioxidant
- E392 Extracts of rosemary antioxidant
- E451 Triphosphates acidity regulator
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
Cooked Fusilli Pasta (28%) (Water, Durum _Wheat_ Semolina), Cooked Pork & Chicken Meatball (15%) (Pork (59%) (Pork, Water, Pork Rind), Chicken Breast (32%), Garlic, Citrus Fibre, Water, Toasted Kibbled Onion, Salt, Ground Coriander, Stabiliser: Triphosphates; Toasted Onion Powder, Ground Black Pepper, Ground White Pepper, Yeast Extract, Smoke Flavouring, Garlic Powder, Antioxidant: Ascorbic Acid; Mace Extract, White Pepper Extract, Paprika Extract, Sage Extract, Coriander Extract, Cayenne Extract), Chopped Tomatoes (Tomatoes, Tomato Juice), Passata, Minced Beef (8%), Eatlean™ Cheese (_Milk_) (8%), Water, Smoked Pepperoni (2.5%) (Pork (76%), Pork Fat, Salt, Dextrose, Sugar, Antioxidants: Sodium Erythorbate, Extracts of Rosemary; Star Anise, Paprika Extract, Ground Caraway, Rosemary Extract, Ground Cumin Seed, Garlic Extract, White Pepper Extract, Chilli Extract, Preservative: Sodium Nitrite), Onion, Beef Stock (Yeast Extract (contains _Barley_), Beef Bone Stock, Water, Salt), Garlic Purée, Tomato Paste, Sliced Jalapeño (Jalapeño Peppers, Salt, Water, White Wine Vinegar), Modified Maize Starch, Smoked Paprika, Paprika, Reduced Sodium Salt (Salt, Potassium Chloride, Magnesium Chloride), Parsley, Yeast Extract (contains _Barley_), Oregano, Cracked Black Pepper, Garlic Powder, Ground Fennel, Roasted Onion Powder, Onion Powder, _Barley_ Malt Extract, Chilli Powder, Roasted Onion Granules, Sweetener: Sucralose.
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.