Ultra-Processed Food As A % of Household Food Consumption

The map above shows Ultra-processed food as a percentage of household purchases, from the journal Public Health Nutrition as reported in the Guardian in 2018..

Here are the full rankings:

1. Portugal – 10.2%
2. Italy – 13.4%
3. Greece – 13.7%
4. France – 14.2%
5. Croatia – 17.9%
6. Cyprus – 20.1%
7. Spain – 20.3%
8. Slovakia – 20.2%
9. Hungary – 21.1%
10. Lithuania – 26.4%
11. Malta – 27.6%
12. Latvia – 32.9%
13. Austria – 35.0%
14. Poland – 36.9%
15. Finland – 40.9%
16. Belgium – 44.6%
17. Ireland – 45.9%
18. Germany – 46.2%
19. United Kingdom – 50.7%

In comparison, data for the US suggests it might be as high as 55%.

What Are Ultra-Processed Foods?

Definition (NOVA system): Ultra-processed foods are items that have undergone extensive industrial processing and typically include ingredients you wouldn’t find in a home kitchen. (e.g., emulsifiers, sweeteners, preservatives, flavour enhancers). They are often ready-to-eat, hyper-palatable, and long-lasting.

NOVA classification (widely used in nutrition research) groups foods into four categories:

1. NOVA 1: Unprocessed/minimally processed foods (e.g., fresh fruit, plain milk)
2. NOVA 2: Processed culinary ingredients (e.g., salt, sugar, oil)
3. NOVA 3: Processed foods (e.g., canned fruit, cheese)
4. NOVA 4: Ultra-processed foods (e.g., sodas, packaged snacks, instant meals), the most heavily industrialized category.

Examples of Ultra-Processed Foods

Common UPFs include:

• Sugary drinks and sodas
• Breakfast cereals with additives
• Packaged snacks (chips, biscuits)
• Ready meals and fast food
• Flavoured yogurts and mass-produced bread
• Processed meats (hot dogs, nuggets)

Why Ultra-Processed Foods Are Considered Harmful

1. Poor Nutritional Profile

UPFs tend to be high in:

• Added sugars
• Saturated fats
• Salt
• Artificial additives
  …and low in whole food nutrients.

2. Linked to Negative Health Outcomes

Epidemiological studies consistently associate higher UPF intake with:

• Obesity and excess weight
• Cardiometabolic problems (e.g., heart disease, hypertension)
• Type 2 diabetes
• Certain cancers
• Mental health issues and mortality

For example, populations with high UPF consumption show higher rates of obesity and chronic diseases compared to those with lower consumption.

Takeaways on Consumption

• English-speaking high-income countries (US, UK, Canada) tend to show the highest UPF intake, often above 50% of total calories.
• Mediterranean and some Southern European countries (e.g., Italy) exhibit lower UPF consumption, often ~10–20%.
• Developing nations and diverse regions show rapid increases, particularly in urban and younger populations.

Why This Matters for Health Policy

High reliance on UPFs is not just a personal issue, researchers link it to broader public health challenges, including rising non-communicable diseases, higher healthcare costs, and poor diet quality at the population level.

Nutritional guidelines in some countries now recommend reducing UPF intake to improve health outcomes.

Can Ultra Processed Foods Ever Be Healthy?

Short answer: sometimes, but with important caveats.

Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are not automatically unhealthy, but high overall consumption is consistently linked to worse health outcomes. The nuance matters.

When ultra-processed foods can be healthy (or at least reasonable)

Fortified foods that fill nutrient gaps

Some UPFs are designed to add nutrients that many people lack:

• Fortified breakfast cereals (iron, folate)
• Plant milks with added calcium, iodine, B12
• Fortified infant foods

If they are low in added sugar and salt, they can play a useful role, especially for:

• Children
• Pregnant people
• Vegans/vegetarians
• Populations with nutrient deficiencies

Medical and special-purpose foods

These are technically ultra-processed but medically valuable:

• Infant formula
• Enteral nutrition drinks (e.g., for hospital patients)
• Oral nutrition supplements for the elderly

In these cases, benefit clearly outweighs risk.

Convenience foods with good composition

Some UPFs score well nutritionally:

• Whole-grain bread with few additives
• Frozen vegetables with sauce removed
• Ready meals high in fibre, protein, and vegetables, and low in salt

NOVA focuses on processing, not nutrient quality, so two foods in NOVA 4 can be very different nutritionally.

What do you think?