ballard farm chicken salad

95
Safe
Safety Score (out of 100)

Contains 1 flagged ingredient

ballard farm chicken 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.

Barcode
0076010000057
NOVA Group
4 — Ultra-processed

What the Data Says About

ballard farm chicken 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, ballard farm chicken 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.

Safety Profile at a Glance

Composite safety metrics for ballard farm chicken salad
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 Not available OpenFoodFacts

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

Ingredient Safety Analysis

1
Chicken
2
Cooked Chick Chicken Broth
3
Salt
Flavoring
Cut Back
4
Mayonnaise
5
Soybean Oil
6
Egg Yolks
7
Water
8
Co Syrup
9
Distilled Vinegar
10
Mustard Seed
11
Calcium Disodium Edta
12
To Protect Flavor
13
Spice Extractive
14
Celery
15
Pickle Relish
16
Cucumbers
17
High-fructose corn syrup
Sweetener
Cut Back
18
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
19
Calcium Chloride
ANTICAKING AGENT OR FREE-FLOW AGENT, DRYING AGENT, ENZYME, FIRMING AGENT, FREEZING OR COOLING AGENT, DIRECT CONTACT, FUMIGANT, HUMECTANT, MALTING OR FERMENTING AID, PH CONTROL AGENT, PROCESSING
GRAS
20
Sodium Benzoate
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, ANTIOXIDANT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, FUMIGANT, PH CONTROL AGENT, SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENT
Certain People Should Avoid GRAS
21
Preservative
22
Natural Flavors
23
Maltol
FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRITIVE SWEETENER, PROCESSING AID
Approved
24
Polysorbate 80
COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, EMULSIFIER OR EMULSIFIER SALT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, SOLVENT OR VEHICLE, STABILIZER OR THICKENER, SURFACE-ACTIVE AGENT
Caution Approved
25
Cooked Chicken
26
Red Peppers
27
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
28
Bread Crumbs Bleached Wheat Flour
29
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
30
Yeast
31
Seasoning Blend
32
Salt Citric Acid
33
Msg
34
Potassium Sorbate
ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT, ANTIOXIDANT, COLOR OR COLORING ADJUNCT, FLAVOR ENHANCER, FLAVORING AGENT OR ADJUVANT, NUTRIENT SUPPLEMENT, PH CONTROL AGENT
Safe GRAS
35
White Pepper
36
Soy Flour
37
Egg
38
Wheat. Soy

Full Ingredient List

chicken (cooked chick chicken broth, salt), mayonnaise (soybean oil, egg yolks, water, co syrup, distilled vinegar, salt, mustard seed, calcium disodium edta (to protect flavor), spice extractive), celery, pickle relish (cucumbers, high fructose corn syrup, distilled vinegar, salt, xanthan gum, calcium chloride, sodium benzoate (preservative), natural flavors, maltol, polysorbate 80), cooked chicken, red peppers (red peppers, water, citric acid), bread crumbs bleached wheat flour, dextrose, salt, yeast), seasoning blend (salt citric acid, monosodium glutamate, potassium sorbate, sodium benzoate, celery, white pepper), soy flour, distilled vinegar. contains: egg, wheat. soy.

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