I absolutely hate the "ultra processed food" discourse. You know what is ultra-processed? Blue Cheese. You know what isn't? Mackerel with dangerous levels of DDT in its flesh.
If you're worried about ingredients, worry about them rationally. Xanthan gum just isn't a problem, but sucking down sugar all day, natural as it is, def is a problem.
@quinn You are, of course, correct. It's perfectly possible to have healthy food that is ultra processed. The problem is that most ultra processed foods are made the way they are not with the goal of producing a tasty and healthy food, but rather with the goal of producing a food as inexpensively as possible and in a way that appeals to taste at the expense of nutrition. Saying that the problem is "ultra processed food" is really just a short hand name to describe a complex problem.
@ErisCaffee @quinn
Some hipster food is so ultra processed that the producers have to write
THIS IS FOOD
on it.
