Safe

Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal

by General Mills

Open Food Facts label for barcode 0016000451377 · General Mills · Plant-based foods and beverages. Screening numbers and flags live in the verdict band below. This hero only situates the source record.

Barcode 0016000451377 · Serving size 1 1/4 cup (55 g) (55 g)

The verdict

Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal by General Mills scores 95/100 in PlainFoodSafe's ingredient screening. We compared its 44 labeled ingredients with FDA SAFFA regulatory records and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings; 1 ingredient is flagged for caution. The source parser split this into a very long 44-component record, beginning with Whole Grain Oats, Cluster, Soy Protein. That density can include amounts and label fragments, so verify the physical label before relying on ingredient order or completeness. This is not a recall, allergy, medical, or dietary-safety determination.

95/100
Safe safety score
1
One flagged · of 44 analyzed
Group 4
Ultra-processed
D
Nutri-Score nutrition grade

Computed directly from OpenFoodFacts ingredient data cross-referenced with FDA SAFFA and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings. See our methodology for the scoring formula.

Composite profile score

One verdict from three independent sources

60/100

Grade C+

Ingredient Safety

95/100

FDA/CSPI flagged-ingredient screening

Processing Level

NOVA 4

Ultra-processed foods

Nutrition Grade

D

Nutri-Score front-of-pack nutrition grade

Weighted 50% ingredient safety / 25% processing level / 25% nutrition grade. A dimension with no data for this product (common: source coverage is partial) is dropped and its weight redistributes across the remaining dimensions, so missing data never silently lowers the score. See the full benchmark table.

00451377 · Open Food Facts · July 2026

Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal label screening desk

SCORE-SAFE 95/100 FLAG-ONE 1 flagged LEN-DENSE 44 ing. REG-PART 32% reg. NOVA-G4 G4 ultra NUTRI-D Nutri-D RANK-SHORT Len top 2% LEAD-FLAG Caramel Coloring PHOTO-FINISH Juice · ±0 BOOK-OFF …451377 · July 2026

14 of 44 parsed ingredients carry FDA SAFFA or CSPI coverage (lead: Caramel Coloring). Source sheet 00451377 · Open Food Facts · July 2026. The screening score and flag counts are in the verdict band above. This desk is the provenance stamp, not a second scorecard. Methodology · Read with nearest score peer: Juice · Nearest score peer is Juice at the same screening score.

Screening model notes

How Nutri-Score, NOVA, and list length read this record

Within the four-tier shelf-label framework this site publishes, the composite for this product falls in the highest band. That band is defined by a threshold on the derived score alone: it is where labels land once components carrying caution-or-worse registry ratings contribute little or nothing to the deduction. The band is a summary of what the screened registries return for the components that were parsed, so it inherits their coverage gaps — a component absent from both registries neither raises nor lowers the figure. The threshold and the weighting behind it are set out on the methodology page.

This label falls in the fourth Nutri-Score band. The model arrives there when its penalty terms — energy density, sugars, saturated fat, sodium — carry more weight in the calculation than the fibre, protein and produce content it credits. The band covers a wide span of the points scale, so position within it is not visible from the letter alone. The grade reflects the declared nutrition panel and is unrelated to the additive ratings listed below, which come from different bodies applying different criteria.

The declared list is among the longer ones in this catalogue. A component set this wide means the screen returns many individual ratings, and the composite accumulates a large number of small contributions instead of turning on a handful of entries. At this length the per-component table below is substantially more informative than the single figure, because the figure compresses a great deal of variation into one number.

Cross-brand screening score neighbourhood

1. Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal: 95/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #11. Cheerios Protein Oats and…95/1002. Juice: 95/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #22. Juice95/1003. Juice: 95/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #33. Juice95/1004. Home Style Snacks: 95/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #44. Home Style Snacks95/1005. Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal Bar: 95/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #55. Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cer…95/100
High-band neighbours for Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal (95/100) outside General Mills.
Chart values as text

Unit: PlainFoodSafe screening score out of 100. Data current as of July 2026.

Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal
95/100
Juice
95/100
Juice
95/100
Home Style Snacks
95/100
Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal Bar
95/100

How It Compares to Its Category

Among the 78,450 products we've scored in the Plant-based foods and beverages category, the average safety score is 97.7/100. Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal scores 2.7 points below that category average (95/100 vs. 97.7/100), so it is roughly typical for shoppers screening within that category specifically, rather than against the product catalog as a whole.

Ingredient-list length vs other Plant-based foods and beverages products

Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal lists 44 ingredients on its label

44 98th percentile a longer ingredient list than 98% of the 63,434 products we track

0–2: 3,907 products (6%). Below this entry. 2–4: 7,921 products (12%). Below this entry. 4–6: 8,845 products (14%). Below this entry. 6–8: 7,032 products (11%). Below this entry. 8–10: 6,320 products (10%). Below this entry. 10–12: 4,190 products (7%). Below this entry. 12–14: 3,449 products (5%). Below this entry. 14–16: 3,051 products (5%). Below this entry. 16–18: 2,493 products (4%). Below this entry. 18–20: 2,053 products (3%). Below this entry. 20–22: 1,808 products (3%). Below this entry. 22–24: 1,758 products (3%). Below this entry. 24–26: 1,623 products (3%). Below this entry. 26–28: 1,606 products (3%). Below this entry. 28–30: 1,360 products (2%). Below this entry. 30–32: 1,198 products (2%). Below this entry. 32–34: 1,081 products (2%). Below this entry. 34–36: 901 products (1%). Below this entry. 36–38: 649 products (1%). Below this entry. 38–40: 534 products (1%). Below this entry. 40–42: 1,655 products (3%). This entry sits in this band. This product 0 42 every published Plant-based foods and beverages product, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more 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

63,434 products, bucketed in bands of 2. This entry: 44 (98th percentile). Data current as of July 2026.

0–2
3,907 products (6%)
2–4
7,921 products (12%)
4–6
8,845 products (14%)
6–8
7,032 products (11%)
8–10
6,320 products (10%)
10–12
4,190 products (7%)
12–14
3,449 products (5%)
14–16
3,051 products (5%)
16–18
2,493 products (4%)
18–20
2,053 products (3%)
20–22
1,808 products (3%)
22–24
1,758 products (3%)
24–26
1,623 products (3%)
26–28
1,606 products (3%)
28–30
1,360 products (2%)
30–32
1,198 products (2%)
32–34
1,081 products (2%)
34–36
901 products (1%)
36–38
649 products (1%)
38–40
534 products (1%)
40 and above
1,655 products (3%)

Source Open Food Facts, product label ingredient lists · July 2026

Ingredient-list length is a descriptive property of the label, not a safety rating. A longer list is not automatically worse and a shorter one is not automatically better; the count is shown so the label can be placed against a comparable population. The comparison here runs against the 63,434 Plant-based foods and beverages products we publish with a parsed label, not against the whole catalogue, because list length varies far more between categories than within one.

Ingredient Safety Analysis

How the 95/100 score is built

Screening starts at 100 and subtracts severity-weighted FDA SAFFA / CSPI flags (1 flagged of 44 labeled). The floor is 0 when deductions exceed 100.

1
Whole Grain Oats
2
Cluster
3
Soy Protein
4
Brown Sugar
5
Lentils
6
Sugar
Sweetener
Cut Back
7
Corn Syrup
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, DRYING AGENT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, HUMECTANT, LEAVENING AGENT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, TEXTURIZER
Cut Back GRAS
8
Rice Starch
STABILIZER OR THICKENER
Listed
9
Honey
10
Caramel
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE
GRAS
11
Caramelized Sugar Syrup
12
Salt
Flavoring
Cut Back
13
Molasses
14
Natural Flavor
15
Caramel Coloring
Coloring
Avoid Approved (color additive, GRAS)
16
Baking Soda. Vitamin E
17
Mixed Tocopherols
18
Added To Preserve Freshness
19
Corn Starch
20
Refiner's Syrup
21
Maltodextrin
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, HUMECTANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENT, TEXTURIZER
Safe GRAS
22
Tripotassium Phosphate
23
Canola Oil
24
Corn Starch
25
Corn Syrup Solids
26
Caramel Color. Vitamin E
27
Calcium Carbonate
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DRYING AGENT, FORMULATION AID, HUMECTANT, LEAVENING AGENT, LUBRICANT OR RELEASE AGENT, MASTICATORY SUBSTANCE, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PH CONTROL AGENT, PROCESSING AID
GRAS
28
Zinc And Iron
29
Mineral Nutrients
30
Vitamin C
31
Sodium Ascorbate
ANTIOXIDANT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DOUGH STRENGTHENER, FLOUR TREATING AGENT, LEAVENING AGENT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, OXIDIZING OR REDUCING AGENT, PROCESSING AID, SURFACE-FINISHING AGENT
GRAS
32
B Vitamin
33
Niacinamide
FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
34
Vitamin B6
35
Pyridoxine Hydrochloride
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
36
Vitamin B2
37
Riboflavin
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
38
Vitamin B1
39
Thiamin Mononitrate
40
Vitamin A
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
41
Palmitate
42
Folic Acid
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
Approved
43
Vitamin B12
44
Vitamin D3

Full Ingredient List

Whole grain oats, cluster (whole grain oats, soy protein, brown sugar, lentils, sugar, corn syrup, rice starch, honey, caramel (sugar, caramelized sugar syrup), salt, molasses, natural flavor, caramel color, baking soda. vitamin e (mixed tocopherols) added to preserve freshness), sugar, corn starch, honey, salt, refiner's syrup, maltodextrin, tripotassium phosphate, canola oil, natural flavor, modified corn starch, corn syrup solids, brown sugar, caramel color. vitamin e (mixed tocopherols) added to preserve freshness.vitamins and minerals: calcium carbonate, zinc and iron (mineral nutrients), vitamin c (sodium ascorbate), a b vitamin (niacinamide), vitamin b6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride), vitamin b2 (riboflavin), vitamin b1 (thiamin mononitrate), vitamin a (palmitate), a b vitamin (folic acid), vitamin b12, vitamin d3.

Other products containing Caramel Color. Vitamin E

Caramel Color. Vitamin E is the least common ingredient on this label, appearing in 4 products across the catalog. See its safety profile.

Categories

Plant-based foods and beverages Plant-based foods Cereals and potatoes Cereals and their products

High-score cross-brand comparables for Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal

Neighbours outside General Mills with screening scores in the same high band as Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal (95/100 here). The 5 same-brand links above stay within General Mills; these peers cross brands.

Follow the flagged-label evidence

Follow the flagged-label evidence

Caramel Coloring is the first flagged ingredient selected from Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal's parsed label. Start with that ingredient’s source context, then compare the rest of this 44-ingredient record.

  • Inspect the FDA SAFFA and CSPI context attached to Caramel Coloring. Open Caramel Coloring
  • Compare Cheerios Protein Oats and Honey Cereal's 1 flagged ingredients with a product from the same score neighbourhood. Compare labels
  • Check how caution flags contribute to the derived screening score before drawing a dietary conclusion. Read the method

This page describes published ingredient-list and source coverage. It is not dietary or medical advice.

Barcode 0016000451377: product data from Open Food Facts (July 2026). Screening from FDA SAFFA and CSPI Chemical Cuisine where attached. Figures are computed from those sources, not editor-typed. Methodology. Reference only, not dietary or medical advice.