Shells And Cheese Buffalo Style

by Velveeta

100
Safe
Safety Score (out of 100)

Shells And Cheese Buffalo Style by Velveeta receives a safety score of 100/100 based on ingredient analysis using FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) data and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings. None of the ingredients in this product are flagged for safety concerns by FDA or CSPI databases. Product label data is sourced from the OpenFoodFacts collaborative database. See the full ingredient breakdown and safety assessment below.

Barcode
0021000083664
NOVA Group
4 — Ultra-processed
Serving Size
0.33 box (109 g)

What the Data Says About

Shells And Cheese Buffalo Style by Velveeta carries a composite safety score of 100/100, which we classify as "Safe" on our four-tier shelf-label framework. The score is computed by mapping each labeled ingredient against FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) regulatory status and CSPI Chemical Cuisine classifications, then penalizing the overall product for each additive rated as caution-or-worse. Product data originates from the OpenFoodFacts collaborative catalog; safety annotations come from federal regulators and the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Our scan did not identify any ingredients in this product that FDA SAFFA or CSPI Chemical Cuisine data flags as requiring caution or avoidance at the time of analysis. That is a meaningful clean-label signal, though it does not account for personal allergens, regional recalls, or inspection findings not reflected in federal additive databases. The per-ingredient breakdown below shows the source-level classification for each component.

On the NOVA processing scale, Shells And Cheese Buffalo Style is classified as Group 4 (Ultra-processed). NOVA measures industrial processing intensity rather than ingredient-level safety, so it complements the SAFFA and CSPI ratings: a product can be clean on additive flags but heavily processed, or lightly processed but carry individually flagged ingredients. Combining both lenses gives a fuller picture than either alone.

Safety Profile at a Glance

Composite safety metrics for Shells And Cheese Buffalo Style
Metric Value Source
PlainFoodSafe Score 100/100 FDA SAFFA + CSPI composite
Flagged ingredients 0 CSPI/FDA review
NOVA processing group Group 4 OpenFoodFacts
Nutri-Score Not available OpenFoodFacts

Composite metric derived from FDA SAFFA, CSPI Chemical Cuisine, OpenFoodFacts. See methodology.

Ingredient Safety Analysis

1
Enriched Macaroni Product
2
Wheat Flour
3
Niacin
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
4
Ferrous Sulfate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PROCESSING AID, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
GRAS
5
Iron
6
Thiamin Mononitrate Vitamin B1
7
Riboflavin
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
8
Vitamin B2
9
Folic Acid
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
Approved
10
Cheese Sauce
11
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
12
Cheddar Cheese Milk
13
Cheese Culture
14
Salt
Flavoring
Cut Back
15
Enzymes
16
Canola Oil
17
Whey Protein Concentrate
FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, TEXTURIZER
GRAS
18
Milk Protein Concentrate
19
Milk
20
Sodium Phosphate
21
Lactic Acid
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, CURING OR PICKLING AGENT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE
Safe GRAS
22
Sodium Alginate
23
Sorbic Acid As A Preservative
24
Milk Fat
25
Oleoresin Paprika
26
Color
27
Annatto Extract
28
Natural Flavor
29
Seasoning Blend
30
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
31
Hot Sauce
32
Cayenne Pepper
33
Distilled Vinegar
34
Garlic Powder
35
Garlic
FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT
GRAS
36
Spice
37
Extractives Of Annatto And Paprika
38
Soybean Oil
39
As A Processing Aid
40
Vinegar
41
Cheese Flavor
42
Cheddar Cheese
43
Pasteurized Milk
44
Butter
45
Sweet Cream
46
Natural Flavors
47
Starter Distillate
48
Enzyme Modified Butter
49
Not More Than 2% Of Calcium Silicate Added To Prevent Caking

Full Ingredient List

ENRICHED MACARONI PRODUCT (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, FERROUS SULFATE (IRON), THIAMIN MONONITRATE VITAMIN B1), RIBOFLAVIN [VITAMIN B2], FOLIC ACID); CHEESE SAUCE (WHEY, CHEDDAR CHEESE MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES, CANOLA OIL, WHEY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, MILK PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, MILK, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF SALT, LACTIC ACID, SODIUM ALGINATE, SORBIC ACID AS A PRESERVATIVE, MILK FAT, OLEORESIN PAPRIKA [COLOR], CHEESE CULTURE, ANNATTO EXTRACT [COLOR], NATURAL FLAVOR, ENZYMES); SEASONING BLEND (MALTODEXTRIN, HOT SAUCE [CAYENNE PEPPER, DISTILLED VINEGAR, SALT, GARLIC POWDER, DEHYDRATED GARLIC, SPICE, WHEY, EXTRACTIVES OF ANNATTO AND PAPRIKA [COLOR], SOYBEAN OIL [AS A PROCESSING AID], VINEGAR, CHEESE FLAVOR [CHEDDAR CHEESE (PASTEURIZED MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES), BUTTER (SWEET CREAM, LACTIC ACID), NATURAL FLAVOR, SALT, NATURAL FLAVORS, STARTER DISTILLATE, SALT, ENZYME MODIFIED BUTTER, NOT MORE THAN 2% OF CALCIUM SILICATE ADDED TO PREVENT CAKING).

Data Sources

Data as of 2025. Source: OpenFoodFacts, FDA SAFFA, CSPI Chemical Cuisine.

Product data from OpenFoodFacts (ODbL). Ingredient safety ratings from FDA SAFFA and CSPI Chemical Cuisine. See our methodology for details.

This information is for reference only and does not constitute dietary or medical advice.

Related

Data sourced from official FDA, USDA, and CDC food-safety databases. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainFoodSafe Editorial