Concern

Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

by Kraft

Open Food Facts label for barcode 0021000028214 · Kraft · Meals. Screening numbers and flags live in the verdict band below. This hero only situates the source record.

Barcode 0021000028214 · Serving size 1 PACKAGE (56.8 g)

The verdict

Macaroni & Cheese Dinner by Kraft scores 50/100 in PlainFoodSafe's ingredient screening. We compared its 45 labeled ingredients with FDA SAFFA regulatory records and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings; 2 ingredients are flagged for caution. The source parser split this into a very long 45-component record, beginning with Enriched Macaroni Product, Wheat Flour, Glycerol Monostearate. 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.

50/100
Concern safety score
2
Few flagged · of 45 analyzed
Group 4
Ultra-processed
E
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

33/100

Grade F

Ingredient Safety

50/100

FDA/CSPI flagged-ingredient screening

Processing Level

NOVA 4

Ultra-processed foods

Nutrition Grade

E

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.

00028214 · Open Food Facts · July 2026

Macaroni & Cheese Dinner label screening desk

SCORE-CONC 50/100 FLAG-FEW 2 flagged LEN-DENSE 45 ing. REG-PART 42% reg. NOVA-G4 G4 ultra NUTRI-E Nutri-E RANK-MID Len top 21% LEAD-FLAG Yellow 6 PHOTO-FINISH Nonfat Dressing · ±0 BOOK-OFF …028214 · July 2026

19 of 45 parsed ingredients carry FDA SAFFA or CSPI coverage (lead: Yellow 6). Source sheet 00028214 · 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: Nonfat Dressing · Nearest score peer is Nonfat Dressing at the same screening score.

Screening model notes

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

This label lands in the third of four positions on the published scale. What separates that position from its neighbours is arithmetic rather than judgement: identical inputs run through the documented weighting always arrive at the same place. Anyone who works the calculation through by hand, using the methodology write-up together with the itemised ratings further down, will reproduce this number exactly — which is the reason for publishing a computed figure instead of an opinion.

Nutri-Score assigned its lowest band to this label. The algorithm reserves that grade for nutrition panels where the values it penalises sit well above the components it credits. The two systems on this page measure genuinely different things: a product can hold this grade while carrying no additive flagged by the registries screened below, and a product graded well can carry several. Neither reading substitutes for the other, and the per-component table is where the additive picture is set out.

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. Macaroni & Cheese Dinner: 50/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #11. Macaroni & Cheese Dinner50/1002. Nonfat Dressing: 50/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #22. Nonfat Dressing50/1003. Pudding vanilla: 50/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #33. Pudding vanilla50/1004. Banquet, Sausage Snack Size Sandwiches: 50/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #44. Banquet, Sausage Snack Si…50/1005. Velveeta, Cheesy Mashed Potatoes: 50/100 · 100% of the leader · rank #55. Velveeta, Cheesy Mashed P…50/100
Nearest cross-brand screening scores for Macaroni & Cheese Dinner (50/100 on 45 parsed ingredients).
Chart values as text

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

Macaroni & Cheese Dinner
50/100
Nonfat Dressing
50/100
Pudding vanilla
50/100
Banquet, Sausage Snack Size Sandwiches
50/100
Velveeta, Cheesy Mashed Potatoes
50/100

How It Compares to Its Category

Among the 15,626 products we've scored in the Meals category, the average safety score is 93.6/100. Macaroni & Cheese Dinner scores 43.6 points below that category average (50/100 vs. 93.6/100), so it is a comparatively weaker pick for shoppers screening within that category specifically, rather than against the product catalog as a whole.

Ingredient-list length vs other Meals products

Macaroni & Cheese Dinner lists 45 ingredients on its label

45 79th percentile a longer ingredient list than 79% of the 11,283 products we track

0–2: 12 products (0%). Below this entry. 2–4: 83 products (1%). Below this entry. 4–6: 127 products (1%). Below this entry. 6–8: 209 products (2%). Below this entry. 8–10: 312 products (3%). Below this entry. 10–12: 315 products (3%). Below this entry. 12–14: 412 products (4%). Below this entry. 14–16: 477 products (4%). Below this entry. 16–18: 542 products (5%). Below this entry. 18–20: 552 products (5%). Below this entry. 20–22: 545 products (5%). Below this entry. 22–24: 550 products (5%). Below this entry. 24–26: 552 products (5%). Below this entry. 26–28: 552 products (5%). Below this entry. 28–30: 574 products (5%). Below this entry. 30–32: 517 products (5%). Below this entry. 32–34: 466 products (4%). Below this entry. 34–36: 451 products (4%). Below this entry. 36–38: 443 products (4%). Below this entry. 38–40: 388 products (3%). Below this entry. 40–42: 3,204 products (28%). This entry sits in this band. This product 0 42 every published Meals 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

11,283 products, bucketed in bands of 2. This entry: 45 (79th percentile). Data current as of July 2026.

0–2
12 products (0%)
2–4
83 products (1%)
4–6
127 products (1%)
6–8
209 products (2%)
8–10
312 products (3%)
10–12
315 products (3%)
12–14
412 products (4%)
14–16
477 products (4%)
16–18
542 products (5%)
18–20
552 products (5%)
20–22
545 products (5%)
22–24
550 products (5%)
24–26
552 products (5%)
26–28
552 products (5%)
28–30
574 products (5%)
30–32
517 products (5%)
32–34
466 products (4%)
34–36
451 products (4%)
36–38
443 products (4%)
38–40
388 products (3%)
40 and above
3,204 products (28%)

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 11,283 Meals 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 50/100 score is built

Screening starts at 100 and subtracts severity-weighted FDA SAFFA / CSPI flags (2 flagged of 45 labeled). The floor is 0 when deductions exceed 100.

1
Enriched Macaroni Product
2
Wheat Flour
3
Glycerol Monostearate
4
Niacin
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
5
Ferrous Sulfate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PROCESSING AID, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
GRAS
6
Iron
7
Thiamin Mononitrate
8
Vitamin B1
9
Riboflavin
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
10
Vitamin B2
11
Folic Acid
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
Approved
12
Cheese Sauce Mix
13
Whey
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FORMULATION AID, MALTING OR FERMENTING AID, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PROCESSING AID, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, SURFACE-FINISHING AGENT, TEXTURIZER
GRAS
14
Cheddar Cheese
15
Milk
16
Cheese Culture
17
Salt
Flavoring
Cut Back
18
Enzymes
19
Whey Protein Concentrate
FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, TEXTURIZER
GRAS
20
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
21
Sugar
Sweetener
Cut Back
22
Corn Syrup Solids
23
Palm Oil
24
Modified Food Starch
25
Milkfat
26
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
27
Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil
28
Cellulose Gum
29
Sodium Tripolyphosphate
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, ANTIOXIDANT, DRYING AGENT, EMULSIFIER OR EMULSIFIER SALT, HUMECTANT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SEQUESTRANT, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, TEXTURIZER
GRAS
30
Sodium Phosphate
31
Lactose
FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, FORMULATION AID, LUBRICANT OR RELEASE AGENT, MALTING OR FERMENTING AID, NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, OXIDIZING OR REDUCING AGENT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENT
Certain People Should Avoid GRAS
32
Silicon Dioxide
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, ANTIOXIDANT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DRYING AGENT, EMULSIFIER OR EMULSIFIER SALT, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, FORMULATION AID, HUMECTANT, LUBRICANT OR RELEASE AGENT
Safe GRAS
33
Anticaking Agent
34
Blue Cheese
35
Citric Acid
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, ANTIOXIDANT, ENZYME, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, LEAVENING AGENT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SEQUESTRANT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENT
Safe GRAS
36
Xanthan Gum
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DRYING AGENT, EMULSIFIER OR EMULSIFIER SALT, FORMULATION AID, PROCESSING AID, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, SURFACE-FINISHING AGENT, TEXTURIZER
Approved
37
Medium Chain Triglycerides
38
Lactic Acid
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, CURING OR PICKLING AGENT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE
Safe GRAS
39
Yellow 5
Avoid Approved (certified color)
40
Yellow 6
Avoid Approved (certified color)
41
Natural Flavor
42
Potassium Chloride
ENZYME, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, MALTING OR FERMENTING AID, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PH CONTROL AGENT, PROCESSING AID, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
Certain People Should Avoid GRAS
43
Acetylated Monoglycerides
44
Apocarotenal
45
Color

Full Ingredient List

Enriched Macaroni Product (Wheat Flour, Glycerol Monostearate, Niacin, Ferrous Sulfate [Iron], Thiamin Mononitrate [Vitamin B1], Riboflavin [Vitamin B2], Folic Acid); Cheese Sauce Mix (Whey, Cheddar Cheese [Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes], Whey Protein Concentrate, Maltodextrin, Sugar, Corn Syrup Solids, Salt, Palm Oil, Contains Less Than 2% Of Modified Food Starch, Milkfat, Calcium Carbonate, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Cellulose Gum, Sodium Tripolyphosphate, Sodium Phosphate, Lactose, Silicon Dioxide [Anticaking Agent], Blue Cheese [Milk, Cheese Culture, Salt, Enzymes], Citric Acid, Xanthan Gum, Medium Chain Triglycerides, Lactic Acid, Enzymes, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Natural Flavor); Modified Food Starch, Maltodextrin, Potassium Chloride, Acetylated Monoglycerides, Salt, Medium Chain Triglycerides, Apocarotenal (Color).

Categories

Meals Pasta dishes

Mid-score cross-brand comparables for Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

Neighbours outside Kraft near Macaroni & Cheese Dinner's mid-band score (50/100). The 5 same-brand links above stay within Kraft; these peers cross brands.

Follow the flagged-label evidence

Follow the flagged-label evidence

Yellow 6 is the first flagged ingredient selected from Macaroni & Cheese Dinner's parsed label. Start with that ingredient’s source context, then compare the rest of this 45-ingredient record.

  • Inspect the FDA SAFFA and CSPI context attached to Yellow 6. Open Yellow 6
  • Compare Macaroni & Cheese Dinner's 2 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 0021000028214: 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.