Cheez IT Pizza pepperoni

by Cheez It

55
Concern
Safety Score (out of 100)

Contains 3 flagged ingredients

Cheez IT Pizza pepperoni by Cheez It receives a safety score of 55/100 based on ingredient analysis using FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) data and CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings. The product contains 3 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
0075706310845
NOVA Group
4 — Ultra-processed
Serving Size
0.25 pizza (121 g)

What the Data Says About

Cheez IT Pizza pepperoni by Cheez It carries a composite safety score of 55/100, 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 3 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, Cheez IT Pizza pepperoni 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 Cheez IT Pizza pepperoni
Metric Value Source
PlainFoodSafe Score 55/100 FDA SAFFA + CSPI composite
Flagged ingredients 3 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
Cheez-it Crust
2
Enriched Wheat Flour Wheat Flour
3
Ferrous Sulfate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PROCESSING AID, STABILIZER OR THICKENER
GRAS
4
Niacin
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
5
Thiamine Mononitrate
NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT
GRAS
6
Rib Folic Acid
7
Water
8
Skim Cheese Concentrate
9
Cheddar Cheese
10
Pasteurized Milk
11
Cheese Cultures
12
Salt
Flavoring
Cut Back
13
Enzymes
14
Skim Cheese {Pasteurized Milk
15
Whey Protein
16
Cultures
17
Natural Flavor
18
Yeast Extract
19
Disodium Phosphate
20
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
21
Yellow Cheddar Cheese
22
Annatto
Coloring
Certain People Should Avoid
23
Color
24
Modified Potato And Corn Starches
25
Anti-caking
26
Palm Oil
27
Leavening
28
Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DOUGH STRENGTHENER, EMULSIFIER OR EMULSIFIER SALT, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, FLOUR TREATING AGENT, FORMULATION AID, LEAVENING AGENT, OXIDIZING OR REDUCING AGENT, SEQUESTRANT
GRAS
29
Sodium Bicarbonate
EMULSIFIER OR EMULSIFIER SALT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, LEAVENING AGENT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PH CONTROL AGENT, PROCESSING AID, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE
GRAS
30
Corn Starch
31
Monocalcium Phosphate
32
Yeast
33
Soybean Oil
34
Paprika
35
Paprika Oleoresin
36
Fermented Wheat Flour
37
Silicon Dioxide
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, ANTIOXIDANT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DRYING AGENT, EMULSIFIER OR EMULSIFIER SALT, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, FORMULATION AID, HUMECTANT, LUBRICANT OR RELEASE AGENT
Safe GRAS
38
Ethoxyquin
ANTIOXIDANT
Approved
39
Low Moisture Whole Milk Mozzarella Cheese
40
Sauce
41
Tomato Concentrate
42
Seasoning
43
Sugar
Sweetener
Cut Back
44
Spices
45
Garlic
FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT
GRAS
46
Pepperoni
47
Pork
48
Beef
49
Or Less Of: Spices
50
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
51
Lactic Acid Starter Culture
52
Oleoresin Of Paprika
53
Sodium Ascorbate
ANTIOXIDANT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, DOUGH STRENGTHENER, FLOUR TREATING AGENT, LEAVENING AGENT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, OXIDIZING OR REDUCING AGENT, PROCESSING AID, SURFACE-FINISHING AGENT
GRAS
54
Flavoring
55
Sodium Nitrite
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, ANTIOXIDANT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, PROPELLANT
Avoid Prior Sanctioned
56
BHA
Avoid GRAS
57
BHT
Caution GRAS
58
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

Full Ingredient List

CHEEZ-IT CRUST (ENRICHED WHEAT FLOUR WHEAT FLOUR, FERROUS SULFATE, NIACIN, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIB FOLIC ACID, WATER, SKIM CHEESE CONCENTRATE [CHEDDAR CHEESE (PASTEURIZED MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES), SKIM CHEESE {PASTEURIZED MILK, WHEY PROTEIN, CULTURES, ENZYMES), WATER, NATURAL FLAVOR, YEAST EXTRACT, SALT, DISODIUM PHOSPHATE, XANTHAN GUM, YELLOW CHEDDAR CHEESE [PASTEURIZED MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES, ANNATTO (COLOR), POTATO AND CORN STARCHES (ANTI-CAKING, PALM OIL, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF SALT, LEAVENING [SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, SODIUM BICARBONATE, CORN STARCH, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE, YEAST, SOYBEAN OIL, PAPRIKA, PAPRIKA OLEORESIN [COLOR], FERMENTED WHEAT FLOUR, SILICON DIOXIDE, ETHOXYQUIN), LOW MOISTURE WHOLE MILK MOZZARELLA CHEESE (PASTEURIZED MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES), SAUCE (WATER, TOMATO CONCENTRATE, SEASONING [SUGAR, SALT, SPICES, GARLIC, SOYBEAN OIL), PEPPERONI (PORK, BEEF, SALT, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF: SPICES, DEXTROSE, LACTIC ACID STARTER CULTURE, OLEORESIN OF PAPRIKA, SODIUM ASCORBATE, FLAVORING, SODIUM NITRITE, BHA, BHT, CITRIC ACID), CHEDDAR CHEESE (PASTEURIZED MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES, ANNATTO).

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