Let’s cut to the chase: ultra-processed food, the latest food frenzy getting everyone in a tizz, covers anything beyond a reasonable level of processing using a host of chemicals and preservatives that one wouldn’t find in a typical kitchen.
Some levels are rightly accepted — say, in traditionally made cheese or smoked salmon — and a minimal amount goes into turning these raw, whole ingredients into food. A 26-ingredient Dorito, however? That’s not just processed, it’s ultra-processed.
For the most part, this is terrible because UPF offers very little nutrition. A recommended 28g portion of Doritos accounts for 10 per cent of your daily recommended fat intake and little else. All the vitamin B, zinc and insoluble fibre found in corn? Gone; replaced with salt, trans fats and a host of artificial flavourings. This matters because more than half of the average adult diet in the UK comes from UPF and a number of academic papers over the past decade have reported statistically significant links between higher consumption of UPFs and poor health. Obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and general mortality all increase in line with a higher consumption of UPFs.
Moreover, the business of making UPF, from sugary snacks to industrially made bread and ready meals is driven by huge, profit-driven corporations that spend billions perfecting nutrient-poor foods that override our biological triggers of satiety, making us eat more. Plus, a look at the board of the British Food and Drink Council reveals top bosses from PepsiCo, Nestle and McDonald’s among its members. To paraphrase comedian Stewart Lee, it’s like a fox’s guide to chicken security. But knowledge is power, and now you know.
