ultra-processed

• ultraprocessed

From ultra- +‎ processed.

ultra-processed (comparative more ultra-processed, superlative most ultra-processed)

1. Very heavily processed.

   Antonym: unprocessed

   Hypernym: processed

   Coordinate term: reprocessed

   ultra-processed food

   • 2013 February 12, Rob Moodie with David Stuckler, Carlos Monteiro, Nick Sheron, Bruce Neal, Thaksaphon Thamarangsi, Paul Lincoln, and Sally Casswell, “Profits and pandemics: prevention of harmful effects of tobacco, alcohol, and ultra-processed food and drink industries”, in The Lancet (Non-Communicable Diseases; 381)‎^[1], number 9867, →DOI:

     Ultra-processed products are made from processed substances extracted or refined from whole foods – e.g. oils, hydrogenated oils and fats, flours and starches, variants of sugar, and cheap parts or remnants of animal foods – with little or no whole foods. Products include burgers, […] pasta dishes, nuggets […] crisps, biscuits, confectionery […] sugared drinks, […] snack products. Most are made […] by large or transnational corporations and are very durable, palatable, and ready to consume, which is an enormous commercial advantage […] [They] are typically energy dense; have a high glycaemic load; are low in dietary fibre, micronutrients, and phytochemicals; and are high in unhealthy types of dietary fat, free sugars, and sodium.

   • 2018 February 14, Sarah Boseley, “Ultra-processed foods may be linked to cancer, says study”, in The Guardian‎^[2]:

     “Ultra-processed” foods, made in factories with ingredients unknown to the domestic kitchen, may be linked to cancer, according to a large and groundbreaking study.

   • 2025 July 22, Gretchen Reynolds, “What causes obesity? A major new study is upending common wisdom”, in The Washington Post‎^[3]:

     In other words, we’re eating too much. We may also be eating the wrong kinds of foods, the study also suggests. In a sub-analysis of the diets of some of the groups from both highly and less-developed nations, the scientists found a strong correlation between the percentage of daily diets that consists of “ultra-processed foods” — which the study’s authors define as “industrial formulations of five or more ingredients” — and higher body-fat percentages.