Lay'S Stax Hot'N Spicy Barbecue Flavored Potato Chips 5.5 Ounce Plastic Canister

by Lay's

0
Avoid
Safety Score (out of 100)

Contains 6 flagged ingredients

Lay'S Stax Hot'N Spicy Barbecue Flavored Potato Chips 5.5 Ounce Plastic Canister by Lay's receives a safety score of 0/100 based on ingredient analysis using FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) data and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings. The product contains 6 ingredients that have been flagged for potential safety concerns by regulatory or consumer advocacy databases. Product label data is sourced from the OpenFoodFacts collaborative database. See the full ingredient breakdown and safety assessment below.

Barcode
0028400006132
Nutri-Score
e
NOVA Group
4 — Ultra-processed
Serving Size
about 12 crisps (28 g) (28 g)

What the Data Says About

Lay'S Stax Hot'N Spicy Barbecue Flavored Potato Chips 5.5 Ounce Plastic Canister by Lay's carries a composite safety score of 0/100, which we classify as "Avoid" 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 identified 6 flagged ingredients in this product — components that at least one official source has classified as requiring caution, targeted avoidance, or further evaluation. Flagged ingredients are the items most likely to surface in FDA inspection findings, state-level ingredient bans, or outbreak-related recall notices, so the per-ingredient breakdown below is the most useful lens for anyone screening this product for a specific dietary concern.

On the NOVA processing scale, Lay'S Stax Hot'N Spicy Barbecue Flavored Potato Chips 5.5 Ounce Plastic Canister 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 E 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 Lay'S Stax Hot'N Spicy Barbecue Flavored Potato Chips 5.5 Ounce Plastic Canister
Metric Value Source
PlainFoodSafe Score 0/100 FDA SAFFA + CSPI composite
Flagged ingredients 6 CSPI/FDA review
NOVA processing group Group 4 OpenFoodFacts
Nutri-Score E OpenFoodFacts

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

Ingredient Safety Analysis

1
Potatoes
2
Vegetable Oil
3
Cottonseed
4
Organic Sunflower
5
Corn Oil
6
Unmodified Potato Starch
7
Sugar
Sweetener
Cut Back
8
Rice Flour
9
And Less Than 2% Of The Following: Salt
10
Mono - And Diglycerides
11
Soy Lecithin
12
Dextrose
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DRYING AGENT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, HUMECTANT, LUBRICANT OR RELEASE AGENT, NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
Cut Back GRAS
13
Brown Sugar
14
Onion Powder
15
Msg
16
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
17
Made From Corn
18
Corn Starch
19
Tomato Powder
20
Chipotle Chile Pepper
21
Artificial Color
22
Yellow 5
Avoid Approved (certified color)
23
Yellow 6
Avoid Approved (certified color)
24
Red 40
Avoid Approved (certified color)
25
Red 40
Avoid Approved (certified color)
26
Yellow 5
Avoid Approved (certified color)
27
Blue 1
Caution Approved (certified color)
28
Sodium Diacetate
FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT
Safe GRAS
29
Yeast Extract
30
Hydrolyzed Corn Protein
31
Malic Acid
FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SYNERGIST
Safe GRAS
32
Corn Starch
33
Molasses
34
Natural Flavor
35
Including Natural Extractives Of Red Pepper
36
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
37
Disodium Inosinate
FLAVOR ENHANCER, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
Approved
38
And Disodium Guanylate

Full Ingredient List

Dried Potatoes, Vegetable Oil (Cottonseed, Sunflower, And/Or Corn Oil), Unmodified Potato Starch, Sugar, Rice Flour, And Less Than 2% Of The Following: Salt, Mono - And Diglycerides, Soy Lecithin, Dextrose, Brown Sugar, Onion Powder, Monosodium Glutamate, Maltodextrin [Made From Corn], Corn Starch, Tomato Powder, Chipotle Chile Pepper, Artificial Color (Yellow 5 Lake, Yellow 6 Lake, Red 40 Lake, Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 1), Sodium Diacetate, Yeast Extract, Hydrolyzed Corn Protein, Malic Acid, Modified Corn Starch, Molasses, Natural Flavor (Including Natural Extractives Of Red Pepper), Citric Acid, Disodium Inosinate, And Disodium Guanylate.

Categories

Snacks

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