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MARKET PANTRY · 0/100 · Not approved
11 not-approved ingredients detected; 10 banned in at least one country
| Ingredient | Verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Enriched Wheat Flour | Caution | Refined flour stripped of bran/germ and fortified with synthetic vitamins to replace lost nutrients. |
| Sugar (Refined) | Caution | Refined sucrose, typically from sugarcane or sugar beet; minimally processed but a refined sweetener. |
| Vegetable Oil (unspecified) | Not approved | Generic label almost always refers to a blend of soybean, corn, or canola oil. |
| Corn Syrup | Caution | Refined glucose syrup from corn starch. |
| Natural Flavor | Caution | Regulatory category that allows solvent extraction and undisclosed processing aids. Lack of transparency. |
| Milk Powder | Caution | Dehydrated milk; spray-drying can oxidize cholesterol. |
| High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) | Not approved | Industrially produced via enzymatic conversion of corn starch; strongly associated with metabolic dysfunction. |
| Modified Food Starch | Not approved | Industrially modified starch (chemical, enzymatic, or physical processing — label rarely specifies which). Common GMO source (corn/wheat/tapioca), and several modification agents (propylene oxide, sodium hydroxide) are flagged in EU regulatory reviews. Editorial position: not what we'd stock. |
| Artificial Flavor | Not approved | Undisclosed synthetic flavoring compounds; no transparency about composition. |
| Polysorbate 60 | Caution | Synthetic surfactant. |
| Potassium Sorbate | Caution | Generally regarded as safe but may cause skin reactions; one of the better-tolerated synthetic preservatives. |
| Titanium Dioxide | Not approved | Banned as a food additive across the EU in 2022 after EFSA could not rule out genotoxicity from nanoparticles. |
| Blue 1 (Brilliant Blue FCF) | Not approved | Synthetic triarylmethane dye; was banned in France, Norway and Finland until 2008 EU harmonization. |
| Artificial Flavors | Not approved | Undisclosed synthetic flavoring compounds. |
| Red 40 Lake (Allura Red AC Aluminum Lake) | Not approved | Aluminum-salt form of Red 40 used in coatings (candies, supplements, pills). Carries the same hyperactivity-in-children concerns as the parent dye and adds aluminum exposure. |
| Yellow 6 (Sunset Yellow FCF) | Not approved | Synthetic azo dye; mandatory warning label in the EU and was banned outright in Norway and Finland for decades. |
| Red 3 (Erythrosine) | Not approved | Banned from US food (Jan 2025) and cosmetics (1990) after rat studies linked it to thyroid tumors. |
| Soy Lecithin | Caution | Hexane-extracted from soybeans unless labeled non-GMO/organic. |
| Yellow 5 (Tartrazine) | Not approved | Synthetic azo dye associated with hyperactivity in sensitive children; mandatory warning label in the EU. |
100 − 50×11 − 10×8 − 5×0 = 0
| Reason | Points | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Vegetable Oil (unspecified) | -50 | Generic label almost always refers to a blend of soybean, corn, or canola oil. |
| High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) | -50 | Industrially produced via enzymatic conversion of corn starch; strongly associated with metabolic dysfunction. |
| Modified Food Starch | -50 | Industrially modified starch (chemical, enzymatic, or physical processing — label rarely specifies which). Common GMO source (corn/wheat/tapioca), and several modification agents (propylene oxide, sodium hydroxide) are flagged in EU regulatory reviews. Editorial position: not what we'd stock. |
| Artificial Flavor | -50 | Undisclosed synthetic flavoring compounds; no transparency about composition. |
| Titanium Dioxide | -50 | Banned as a food additive across the EU in 2022 after EFSA could not rule out genotoxicity from nanoparticles. |
| Blue 1 (Brilliant Blue FCF) | -50 | Synthetic triarylmethane dye; was banned in France, Norway and Finland until 2008 EU harmonization. |
| Artificial Flavors | -50 | Undisclosed synthetic flavoring compounds. |
| Red 40 Lake (Allura Red AC Aluminum Lake) | -50 | Aluminum-salt form of Red 40 used in coatings (candies, supplements, pills). Carries the same hyperactivity-in-children concerns as the parent dye and adds aluminum exposure. |
| Yellow 6 (Sunset Yellow FCF) | -50 | Synthetic azo dye; mandatory warning label in the EU and was banned outright in Norway and Finland for decades. |
| Red 3 (Erythrosine) | -50 | Banned from US food (Jan 2025) and cosmetics (1990) after rat studies linked it to thyroid tumors. |
| Yellow 5 (Tartrazine) | -50 | Synthetic azo dye associated with hyperactivity in sensitive children; mandatory warning label in the EU. |
| Enriched Wheat Flour | -10 | Refined flour stripped of bran/germ and fortified with synthetic vitamins to replace lost nutrients. |
| Sugar (Refined) | -10 | Refined sucrose, typically from sugarcane or sugar beet; minimally processed but a refined sweetener. |
| Corn Syrup | -10 | Refined glucose syrup from corn starch. |
| Natural Flavor | -10 | Regulatory category that allows solvent extraction and undisclosed processing aids. Lack of transparency. |
| Milk Powder | -10 | Dehydrated milk; spray-drying can oxidize cholesterol. |
| Polysorbate 60 | -10 | Synthetic surfactant. |
| Potassium Sorbate | -10 | Generally regarded as safe but may cause skin reactions; one of the better-tolerated synthetic preservatives. |
| Soy Lecithin | -10 | Hexane-extracted from soybeans unless labeled non-GMO/organic. |
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