Safe

Sweet & Sour Chicken

by Marie Callender's

Scores 100/100 on FDA SAFFA + CSPI ingredient analysis , with no flagged ingredients identified.

Barcode 0021131506452 · Serving size 1 meal (397 g)

The verdict

Sweet & Sour Chicken by Marie Callender's scores 100/100 in PlainFoodSafe's ingredient screening. We compared its 52 labeled ingredients with FDA SAFFA regulatory records and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings; 0 ingredients are flagged for caution. This is not a recall, allergy, medical, or dietary-safety determination; check official notices and the product label for current decisions.

100/100
Safe safety score
0
flagged ingredients of 52 analyzed
Group 4
Ultra-processed
C
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.

What the Data Says About Sweet & Sour Chicken

Sweet & Sour Chicken by Marie Callender's 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. This score is a transparent derived index we compute from that public data, not an official FDA rating or endorsement; see the Methodology page for the exact weighting.

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, Sweet & Sour Chicken 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. The Nutri-Score grade of C reflects nutritional balance, calories, saturated fat, sugar, sodium versus fiber, protein, and produce content, which again is a distinct dimension from additive safety and worth weighing alongside the scores above.

Safety Profile at a Glance

Composite safety metrics for Sweet & Sour Chicken
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 C OpenFoodFacts

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

How It Compares to Its Category

Among the 25,915 products we've scored in the Frozen foods category, the average safety score is 93.3/100. Sweet & Sour Chicken scores 6.7 points above that category average (100/100 vs. 93.3/100), so it is a comparatively strong pick for shoppers screening within that category specifically, rather than against the product catalog as a whole.

Ingredient Safety Analysis

1
Cooked Rice
2
Water
3
White Rice
4
Soybean Oil
5
Sweet & Sour Glaze
6
Sugar
Sweetener
Cut Back
7
Pineapple Juice Concentrate
8
Rice Vinegar
9
Corn Starch
10
Or Less Of: Soy Sauce
11
Wheat
12
Soybeans
13
Salt
Flavoring
Cut Back
14
Alcohol
15
Vinegar
16
Lactic Acid
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, CURING OR PICKLING AGENT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE
Safe GRAS
17
Tomato Paste
18
Garlic
FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT
GRAS
19
Cooking Wine
20
White Wine
21
Natural Flavor
22
Organic Ginger
23
Canola Oil
24
Chili Paste
25
Red Chili Peppers
26
Distilled Vinegar
27
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
28
Chicken Breast Fritter
29
Chicken Breast
30
Modified Food Starch
31
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
32
Potassium Phosphate
33
Battered With
34
Bleached Wheat Flour
35
Yellow Corn Flour
36
Leavening {Sodium Bicarbonate
37
Sodium Aluminum Phosphate}
38
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
39
Egg
40
Guar Gum
41
Predusted With
42
Enriched Wheat Flour {Enriched With Niacin
43
Ferrous Sulfate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PROCESSING AID, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
GRAS
44
Thiamine Mononitrate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
45
Riboflavin
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
46
Folic Acid}
47
Fried In Vegetable Oil
48
Carrots
49
Broccoli
50
Dehydrated Green And Red Bell Peppers
51
Pineapple
52
Organic Onions

Full Ingredient List

Cooked rice (water, white rice, soybean oil), sweet & sour glaze (water, sugar, pineapple juice concentrate, rice vinegar, modified corn starch, contains 2% or less of: soy sauce [water, wheat, soybeans, salt, alcohol, vinegar, lactic acid], salt, tomato paste, garlic, cooking wine [white wine, natural flavor, salt], ginger, canola oil, chili paste [red chili peppers, distilled vinegar, salt, xanthan gum])), chicken breast fritter (chicken breast, water, modified food starch, salt, potassium chloride, potassium phosphate, battered with [water, bleached wheat flour, yellow corn flour, leavening {sodium bicarbonate, sodium aluminum phosphate}, whey, salt, egg, guar gum], predusted with [enriched wheat flour {enriched with niacin, ferrous sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid}, soybean oil, salt, natural flavor], fried in vegetable oil), carrots, broccoli, green and red bell peppers, water, pineapple, onions.

Categories

Frozen foods

Data Sources

Data as of May 2026. 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.

Product data from Open Food Facts; additive safety from the FDA SAFFA inventory and CSPI Chemical Cuisine. See our methodology for details. Compiled by PlainFoodSafe

Every figure on PlainFoodSafe is rendered directly from OpenFoodFacts and FDA data, no number is typed in by an editor. Product figures are computed directly from OpenFoodFacts, FDA SAFFA, and CSPI Chemical Cuisine 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 May 2026.