Pasta With A Seasoned Taco Sauce Mix & Cheese Topping Mix

by Food Club

50
Concern
Safety Score (out of 100)

Contains 2 flagged ingredients

Pasta With A Seasoned Taco Sauce Mix & Cheese Topping Mix by Food Club receives a safety score of 50/100 based on ingredient analysis using FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) data and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings. The product contains 2 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
0036800100657
Nutri-Score
d
NOVA Group
4 — Ultra-processed
Serving Size
40g

What the Data Says About

Pasta With A Seasoned Taco Sauce Mix & Cheese Topping Mix by Food Club carries a composite safety score of 50/100, which we classify as "Concern" 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 2 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, Pasta With A Seasoned Taco Sauce Mix & Cheese Topping Mix 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 D 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 Pasta With A Seasoned Taco Sauce Mix & Cheese Topping Mix
Metric Value Source
PlainFoodSafe Score 50/100 FDA SAFFA + CSPI composite
Flagged ingredients 2 CSPI/FDA review
NOVA processing group Group 4 OpenFoodFacts
Nutri-Score D OpenFoodFacts

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

Ingredient Safety Analysis

1
Enriched Macaroni Product
2
Semolina Flour With Niacin
3
Iron
4
Ferrous Sulfate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PROCESSING AID, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
GRAS
5
Thiamine Mononitrate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
6
Riboflavin
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
7
Folic Acid
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
Approved
8
Corn Starch
9
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
10
Salt
Flavoring
Cut Back
11
Food-starch Modified
12
Chili Seasoning
13
Chili Pepper
14
Spice
15
Garlic
FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT
GRAS
16
Onion
17
Tomato
18
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
19
Yellow Corn Flour
20
With Traces Of Lime
21
Sugar
Sweetener
Cut Back
22
Enzyme-modified Cheddar Cheese And Butter
23
Cheddar Cheese
24
Milk
25
Cheese Culture
26
Enzymes
27
Butter
28
Cream
29
Cheese Cheddar
30
Tapioca Starch
NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
GRAS
31
Color
32
Paprika
33
Yellow 5
Avoid Approved (certified color)
34
Yellow 6
Avoid Approved (certified color)
35
Oleoresin Paprika
36
Buttermilk
37
Msg
38
Dehydrated Red & Green Bell Peppers
39
Lactic Acid
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, CURING OR PICKLING AGENT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE
Safe GRAS
40
Sodium Phosphate
41
Blue Cheese
42
Cultured Milk
43
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
44
Reduced Lactose Whey
45
Disodium Phosphate
46
Natural And Artificial Flavor

Full Ingredient List

ENRICHED MACARONI PRODUCT (SEMOLINA FLOUR WITH NIACIN, IRON [FERROUS SULFATE], THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), CORN STARCH, MALTODEXTRIN, SALT, FOOD-STARCH MODIFIED, CHILI SEASONING (DEHYDRATED CHILI PEPPER, SPICE, SALT, DEHYDRATED GARLIC), DEHYDRATED ONION, DEHYDRATED TOMATO, WHEY, YELLOW CORN FLOUR (WITH TRACES OF LIME), SUGAR, ENZYME-MODIFIED CHEDDAR CHEESE AND BUTTER (CHEDDAR CHEESE [MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES] BUTTER [CREAM, SALT] CHEESE CULTURE, ENZYMES), CHEESE CHEDDAR (MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES), SPICE, MODIFIED TAPIOCA STARCH, COLOR (PAPRIKA, YELLOW 5, YELLOW 6, OLEORESIN PAPRIKA), BUTTERMILK, MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, DEHYDRATED GARLIC, DEHYDRATED RED & GREEN BELL PEPPERS, LACTIC ACID, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, BLUE CHEESE (CULTURED MILK, SALT, ENZYMES), CITRIC ACID, REDUCED LACTOSE WHEY, DISODIUM PHOSPHATE, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVOR

Categories

Undefined

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