Hy-Vee
Open Food Facts brand roll-up for Hy-Vee, current as of September 2026. Screening averages and flag shares live in the short-answer band below. This hero only situates the catalog slice.
The short answer
Hy-Vee averages 91.8/100 across the 1,343 of 1,918 tracked products that carry an ingredient list, and 26.5% of those contain at least one separately flagged ingredient. The figure summarizes Open Food Facts labels cross-referenced with FDA SAFFA and CSPI; it does not establish recall status, allergy suitability, or the composition of products outside this snapshot.
- 91.8/100
- average ingredient-screening score across 1,343 scored products
- 1,918
- tracked products in this brand roll-up
- 26.5%
- scored products with at least one flagged ingredient
- 65.4%
- of NOVA-classified products that are ultra-processed (Group 4)
Source snapshot current as of September 2026; open individual products before making a product-specific decision.
Portfolio reading
Use the distribution, then open the outliers
With 1,918 tracked products, the useful signal is the shape of the portfolio rather than one headline score. The current concern-sorted list begins Nacho cheese flavored tortilla chips, nacho cheese; Pub style snack mix, pub style; Birthday Cake Bark; 26.5% of records contain at least one flagged ingredient while the overall mean is 91.8/100. Open those outliers first, then compare neighboring formulations. The aggregate does not establish recall status, allergen suitability, or the composition of an item outside this snapshot.
Catalog evidence
Ingredient-list coverage comes before the score
Only 1,343 of 1,918 tracked Hy-Vee records (70%) include an ingredient list. The remaining 575 cannot be screened, so the 91.8/100 mean describes the labelled subset rather than the whole brand.
Next check: use the product rows below to verify the labelled subset, then compare the current package for any unscored item.
What the Data Says About Hy-Vee
Hy-Vee: 1,918 products tracked, 1,343 with an ingredient list, avg safety score 91.8/100, 26.5% of those scored products has at least one flagged ingredient.
Because ingredient lists cover only 70% of tracked records, this average is a description of the labelled subset, not a brand-wide tier. The coverage gap is the dominant limitation. Scoring methodology + dye-pledge context →
Among the 804 brands with 50+ products (the typical brand in that group flags 18% of its catalog), Hy-Vee's 26.5% flagged share is 8.5 points above that cohort median.
Processing mix (NOVA)
Hy-Vee processing intensity
Hy-Vee's NOVA-classified set is 1,306 products: 65.4% ultra-processed (Group 4, 854 items) with Group 4 (ultra-processed) largest at 854. That ultra-processed share sits 12.9 points below the 78.3% median for 1,323 brands with 50+ products. NOVA is processing intensity, not additive safety.
Shelf mix
Where Hy-Vee shows up in Open Food Facts
In Open Food Facts shelf labels, Hy-Vee concentrates in Plant-based foods and beverages (417, 40% of this top-five); Snacks (307); Dairies (148); Condiments (113); Beverages (61).
Average score by leading shelf label
| Shelf | Scored n | Avg | Flagged |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plant-based foods and beverages | 401 | 98.3/100 | 10.5% |
| Snacks | 306 | 85/100 | 32.7% |
| Dairies | 147 | 98.3/100 | 13.6% |
| Condiments | 111 | 97.1/100 | 24.3% |
| Beverages | 59 | 75.7/100 | 55.9% |
Cohort context
Flagged-ingredient share among large brands
Hy-Vee's 26.5% flagged share is measured across 1,343 scored products. The chart places that rate against the 50 brands with 50+ scored products in this snapshot, the same qualifying cohort used on the rankings page.
Hy-Vee flagged share vs large-brand cohort
26.5% of scored products carry at least one flagged ingredient
27% 0th percentile is at or above the flagged share of 0% of the 50 qualifying brands we track
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more qualifying brands. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Distribution as text
- 0%–10%
- 0 qualifying brands (0%)
- 10%–20%
- 0 qualifying brands (0%)
- 20%–30%
- 0 qualifying brands (0%)
- 30%–40%
- 0 qualifying brands (0%)
- 40%–50%
- 0 qualifying brands (0%)
- 50%–60%
- 0 qualifying brands (0%)
- 60%–70%
- 0 qualifying brands (0%)
- 70%–80%
- 3 qualifying brands (6%)
- 80%–90%
- 25 qualifying brands (50%)
- 90% and above
- 22 qualifying brands (44%)
Source Open Food Facts × FDA SAFFA × CSPI · September 2026
Portfolio shape
How scores cluster inside this brand
The brand average (91.8/100) summarizes 1,343 scored products. This distribution shows whether that mean sits on a tight cluster or a wide spread, a few low-scoring SKUs can matter even when the headline average looks strong.
Hy-Vee product score distribution
Brand average 91.8/100 across 1,343 scored products
92 22nd percentile sits above 22% of the 1,343 scored products we track
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more scored products. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Distribution as text
- 0–10
- 29 scored products (2%)
- 10–20
- 3 scored products (0%)
- 20–30
- 17 scored products (1%)
- 30–40
- 10 scored products (1%)
- 40–50
- 15 scored products (1%)
- 50–60
- 27 scored products (2%)
- 60–70
- 12 scored products (1%)
- 70–80
- 44 scored products (3%)
- 80–90
- 91 scored products (7%)
- 90–100
- 108 scored products (8%)
- 100 and above
- 987 scored products (73%)
Source Open Food Facts product labels × FDA SAFFA × CSPI · September 2026
Hy-Vee relies most on Caramel Coloring, an industry staple
Across the 1,343 Hy-Vee products scored here, Caramel Coloring appears in 89. It is used by 3,551 other brands in this database (10.1% of them), so its presence says more about the category than about this brand. A flag records that a named source raised a concern about an ingredient. It is not a finding that a product is unsafe to eat.
| Flagged ingredient | Hy-Vee products | Why it is flagged |
|---|---|---|
| Caramel Coloring | 89 | Restricted: California (Prop 65 warning for 4-MEI) |
| Yellow 5 | 76 | FDA voluntary phase-out target 2027-12-31 (a request, not a ban) · Restricted: California (schools) |
| Red 40 | 69 | FDA voluntary phase-out target 2027-12-31 (a request, not a ban) · Restricted: California (schools) |
| Carrageenan | 67 | Concern recorded by a review body; no ban cited |
| Yellow 6 | 60 | FDA voluntary phase-out target 2027-12-31 (a request, not a ban) · Restricted: California (schools) |
| Blue 1 | 54 | FDA voluntary phase-out target 2027-12-31 (a request, not a ban) · Restricted: California (schools) |
| Sodium Nitrite | 41 | Preservative with a recorded concern |
| Sucralose | 41 | Concern recorded by a review body; no ban cited |
Counts are products in this database whose ingredient list names the flagged ingredient. Flags come from FDA enforcement actions, CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings and US state ingredient laws; see the methodology for how each source is applied.
Visible product sample
Label complexity does not determine the screening result
Each point is one of the 50 concern-sorted Hy-Vee records shown below. Horizontal position is the number of resolved ingredients on that product's stored label; vertical position is its source-derived screening score. The dashed medians (17.5 ingredients and 0/100) divide this displayed sample only. A longer label is not automatically worse: open a specific product to inspect its flagged rows and source coverage.
- Shown records
- 50
- Median label
- 17.5 ingredients
- Median score
- 0/100
The outlined point is Nacho cheese flavored tortilla chips, nacho cheese, the displayed record with the most flagged ingredients (9). Bubble size represents flagged ingredient count plus one, so zero-flagged products remain visible. The score is derived from FDA SAFFA and CSPI fields; this chart does not establish recall status, dietary suitability, or a health outcome.
Read the plotted values
- Nacho cheese flavored tortilla chips, nacho cheese: 44 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 9 flagged.
- Pub style snack mix, pub style: 66 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 9 flagged.
- Birthday Cake Bark: 22 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 8 flagged.
- Chocolate Reduced Calorie Instant Pudding & Pie Filling: 22 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 6 flagged.
- Simplylight, peach iced tea sugar free, low calorie drink mix: 15 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 6 flagged.
- Peach iced tea sugar free, low calorie drink mix to go packets, peach: 15 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 6 flagged.
- Original Snack Party Mix, Original: 65 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 6 flagged.
- Indian Corn Candy, Indian Corn: 15 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Autumn Mix Candy, Autumn Mix: 15 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Raspberry green tea sugar free, low calorie drink mix, raspberry: 16 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Low Calorie Drink Mix: 20 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Pretzels: 33 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Sour cream & cheddar flavored wavy potato chips, sour cream & cheddar: 41 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Jordan Almonds: 17 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Harvest Mix Candy, Harvest Mix: 15 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Milk Chocolate Mini Gems Ice Cream Topping: 20 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Hy-vee, spice drops: 10 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Sour Crawlers Gummi Candy, Sour: 15 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Tortilla Chips - Restaurant Style: 19 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Frosted Christmas Tree Pretzels: 36 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 5 flagged.
- Sugar free vanilla flavored pudding cups: 17 resolved ingredients, 15/100, 5 flagged.
- Candy Corn Candy, Candy Corn: 17 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Cream Pumpkins Candy, Cream Pumpkins: 14 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Lemon, lime, orange & strawberry fun miniature marshmallows, lemon, lime, orange & strawberry: 13 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Candy Corn Candy, Candy Corn: 17 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Cream Pumpkins Candy, Cream Pumpkins: 14 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Halloween Spice Drops Candy, Halloween Spice Drops: 10 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Hy-vee, assorted fruit slices candy: 9 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Sharks Fruit Flavored Snacks: 20 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Hy-vee, gum drops candy: 9 resolved ingredients, 0/100, 4 flagged.
- Instant chocolate pudding & pie filling, chocolate: 18 resolved ingredients, 10/100, 4 flagged.
- Spinach & Herb Flour Tortillas: 40 resolved ingredients, 10/100, 4 flagged.
- Cream cheese flavored creamy frosting: 28 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Chocolate fudge creamy frosting: 29 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Low Calorie Drink Mix: 14 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Simplylight, raspberry lemonade drink mix, raspberry lemonade: 14 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Simplylight: 11 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Raspberry lemonade sugar free, low calorie drink mix, raspberry lemonade: 14 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Fruit punch sugar free, low calorie drink mix, fruit punch: 14 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Cheddar Baked Potato Soup With Ham: 53 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Sugar free hard candy: 12 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Sugar Free Hard Candy: 12 resolved ingredients, 20/100, 4 flagged.
- Sweet Sugar Free Relish, Sweet: 19 resolved ingredients, 30/100, 4 flagged.
- Sausage Gravy: 29 resolved ingredients, 30/100, 4 flagged.
- Instant Pudding & Pie Filling: 23 resolved ingredients, 30/100, 4 flagged.
- Chocolate, vanilla and strawberry flavored ice cream between two chocolate wafers sandwiches, neapolitan: 36 resolved ingredients, 40/100, 4 flagged.
- Mint ice cream with chocolate flavored chips between two chocolate wafers sandwiches, mint chip: 35 resolved ingredients, 40/100, 4 flagged.
- Sugar free hard candy, caramel creme, caramel creme: 18 resolved ingredients, 60/100, 4 flagged.
- Black Twists Licorice: 23 resolved ingredients, 25/100, 3 flagged.
- Macaroni & cheese bites coated in batter: 59 resolved ingredients, 25/100, 3 flagged.
Products by Hy-Vee
Showing 50 display-quality records, sorted by concern level (most flagged first); 1,868 tracked records with unusable upstream names remain in the aggregate but are not shown.
Nationwide brands with similar catalog profiles
Two PlainFoodSafe-derived peer sets for Hy-Vee: closest on tracked product count (1,918 here) and closest on average ingredient screening score (91.8/100 here). Rows stay link-disjoint so each axis is a distinct neighborhood, not a largest-catalog strip.
Similar product count
Nearest other brands by Open Food Facts product count (floored at ≥50).
Similar average screening score
Nearest other brands by average ingredient screening score (floored at ≥50 scored products), distinct from the count row.
Counts and averages from Open Food Facts labels screened against FDA SAFFA and CSPI Chemical Cuisine; neither axis is a health outcome.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Hy-Vee food safe? ▼
Hy-Vee has an average safety score of 92/100 across the 1,343 of 1918 tracked products that carry an ingredient list. 26.5% of those contain flagged ingredients.
How many Hy-Vee products are tracked? ▼
Our database tracks 1,918 Hy-Vee products. 1,343 include an ingredient list and can be screened against FDA SAFFA and CSPI data; 575 cannot be scored from this snapshot.
How processed is the Hy-Vee catalog? ▼
Hy-Vee has 1,306 NOVA-classified products; 65.4% are ultra-processed (Group 4, 854 items) and Group 4 is the largest slice. NOVA describes processing intensity, not whether additives on a label are flagged.
Which shelves dominate the Hy-Vee catalog? ▼
In Open Food Facts shelf labels, Hy-Vee concentrates in Plant-based foods and beverages (417, 40% of this top-five); Snacks (307); Dairies (148); Condiments (113); Beverages (61).
Does Hy-Vee use artificial dyes? ▼
Open the individual product pages below to see which Hy-Vee items list a synthetic dye on their label. For whether the company has committed to removing dyes, the FDA and CSPI both publish corporate-commitment trackers; we no longer restate those commitments here.
What to do with this Hy-Vee profile
Use this roll-up as orientation, then verify the specific package you hold against its ingredient panel and the named official sources.
- Start with Nacho cheese flavored tortilla chips, nacho cheese, the displayed product with the most flagged ingredients (9) in this sample. Open the outlier product
- Caramel Coloring appears in 89 scored Hy-Vee products, review why each source flags it before treating the brand average as uniform. Review flagged ingredient counts
- Compare Hy-Vee's 91.8/100 average and 26.5% flagged share against other brands before treating either figure as a recall or clearance signal. Brand safety rankings
- Cross-check any additive concern against FDA SAFFA and CSPI Chemical Cuisine rather than relying on this derived index alone. Scoring methodology
A flagged ingredient records a source concern, not a recall, ban, or medical clearance. Always verify the current package label and consult official sources for product-specific decisions.
Citation & disclaimer notes
Brand scores aggregate ingredient-level FDA SAFFA + CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings across Open Food Facts product data. See our methodology. Retrieved and formatted by PlainFoodSafe.Disclaimer: Informational purposes only; not professional advice. A flagged ingredient is not a recall or a ban. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Every figure on PlainFoodSafe is rendered directly from OpenFoodFacts and FDA data, no number is typed in by an editor. Brand figures are computed directly from OpenFoodFacts and FDA data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2026.
