Discover single ingredient foods, minimally processed products, and brands that achieve the lowest processing scores across all categories.
1.0
Perfect processing score for pure ingredients like spices, oils, and whole foods
≤2.5
Top category for 2-3 ingredient products with minimal processing
• Category Leaders: Every major food category has processing winners with scores ≤2.5
• Brand Champions: Prairie Fresh Natural leads with perfect 1.0 average across 380+ products
• Store Brand Winners: Publix achieves perfect 1.0 scores on 187 products
Pure ingredients with no additives or processing beyond basic preparation:
Simple products with 2-3 ingredients and minimal processing:
Best processing score in each major food category:
Brands with the lowest average processing scores (minimum 50 products):
Store brands excelling in low-processing foods:
| Brand | Products | Avg Processing | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
| Publix | 187 | 1.00 | Single ingredient products |
| Simply Super | 48 | 1.00 | Natural products focus |
| Farmer's Market | 35 | 1.86 | Fresh produce focus |
| Acme Markets | 24 | 1.88 | Quality store brand |
| Simply Beyond | 27 | 1.89 | Simple ingredients |
Major brands with unexpectedly low processing scores:
Why surprising? These major brands are often associated with processed foods, but their single-ingredient or simple products achieve perfect or near-perfect processing scores.
• Short ingredient lists: 1-3 ingredients maximum
• Recognizable ingredients: Items you could buy separately
• "100%" labels: 100% juice, 100% whole grain, etc.
• Single ingredient foods: Spices, oils, whole foods
• Long ingredient lists: More than 5-6 ingredients
• Unpronounceable additives: Chemical-sounding names
• Multiple preservatives: Several preservation methods
• Artificial colors/flavors: Non-natural additives
Products with exactly one ingredient, no additives, preservatives, or processing aids.
Examples: Pure spices, single fruit juices, whole grains, raw nuts, pure oils, individual vegetables
Simple products with 2-3 natural ingredients and basic processing like mixing or heating.
Examples: Juice blends, seasoned nuts, simple nut butters, basic yogurt, whole grain breads with minimal ingredients
Our algorithm considers ingredient count, processing aids, preservatives, and artificial additives.
Scoring factors: Base score from ingredient count, penalties for artificial additives (+2.0), HFCS (+1.5), preservatives (+0.6-1.5), modified ingredients (+0.8)
Disclaimer: All tools and data visualizations are provided for educational and informational purposes only. They are not intended as health, medical, or dietary advice. Always consult healthcare professionals for personalized dietary guidance.