Southwestern style salad
Contains 1 flagged ingredient
Southwestern style salad receives a safety score of 95/100 based on ingredient analysis using FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) data and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings. The product contains 1 ingredient 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.
What the Data Says About
Southwestern style salad carries a composite safety score of 95/100, 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 identified 1 flagged ingredient 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, Southwestern style salad 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
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| PlainFoodSafe Score | 95/100 | FDA SAFFA + CSPI composite |
| Flagged ingredients | 1 | 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.
Ingredient Safety Analysis
Full Ingredient List
Iceberg and romaine lettuces, chicken breast with rib meat (chicken breast with rib meat, water, seasoning [hydrolyzed soy protein, sugar, salt, brown sugar, garlic powder, spices, chili pepper, paprika {color}, carrageenan, dehydrated soy sauce {wheat, soybeans, salt}, corn syrup solids, maltodextrin, natural flavors, lime juice solids, extractives of paprika {color}], contains less than 2% of: sodium lactate, potassium lactate, sodium phosphate, sodium diacetate), salsa ranch dressing (salsa [tomatoes, onions, chilies, garlic, salt, cilantro, citric acid, xanthan gum], vegetable oil [soybean and/or canola oil], buttermilk [cultured skim milk, butterfat, salt], sugar, water, white wine vinegar, salt, egg yolks, natural and artificial flavors, jalapeno peppers, distilled vinegar, dehydrated garlic, lemon juice concentrate, extractive of rice, xanthan gum, spices [mustard], phosphoric acid, polysorbate 60, sodium benzoate [as a preservative], potassium sorbate [as a preservative], dehydrated parsley, citric acid, calcium disodium edta [to protect flavor]), corn, black beans, cheese blend (monterey jack cheese and queso quesadilla cheese [pasteurized milk, cheese culture, salt, enzymes], asadero cheese and cheddar cheese [pasteurized milk, cheese culture, salt, enzymes, annatto {vegetable color}], potato starch and powdered cellulose [to prevent caking], natamycin [a natural mold inhibitor]), tortilla strips (white corn, yellow corn, blue corn, sunflower oil or corn oil, red beet powder, sea salt, water, trace of lime), pepitas (pumpkin seeds, soybean oil and/or cottonseed oil, salt).
Categories
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.
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