Vanliga livsmedelstillsatser förklarade på klarspråk — vad de är, varför de används och om du bör oroa dig.
Modern food labels are full of technical names that most people don't recognise. E471, modified starch, glucose syrup — these ingredients appear on almost every packaged food, but few people know what they actually are or why they're there.
This dictionary covers the most common food additives, sweeteners, preservatives and fats found in Swedish supermarkets — from the completely harmless to the ones worth being aware of. Each ingredient is rated by its NOVA signal, showing which processing level it typically indicates.
E100 🤔 Nivå 3
Curcumin A natural yellow colouring from turmeric — one of the safer food colours
E150 🫣 Nivå 4
Caramel Colour A brown colouring made by heating sugar — common in cola and dark sauces
E200 🤔 Nivå 3
Sorbic Acid A preservative that stops mould — found in cheese, wine and baked goods
E202 🤔 Nivå 3
Potassium Sorbate A salt form of sorbic acid — very common mild preservative
E250 🫣 Nivå 4
Sodium Nitrite A preservative in cured meats — linked to cancer risk at high consumption
E210 🫣 Nivå 4
Benzoic Acid A preservative in soft drinks — can cause reactions in sensitive people
E220 🤔 Nivå 3
Sulphur Dioxide A preservative in wine and dried fruit — must be declared as an allergen
E300 😊 Nivå 2
Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C) Just vitamin C — one of the safest additives, actually good for you
E322 🤔 Nivå 3
Lecithin An emulsifier from soy or eggs — very common, generally low risk
E330 🤔 Nivå 3
Citric Acid The acid in lemons — very common and generally harmless
E407 🫣 Nivå 4
Carrageenan Extracted from red seaweed — controversial thickener linked to gut inflammation
E450 🫣 Nivå 4
Diphosphates A raising agent and texturiser — very common in processed meats and baked goods
E471 🫣 Nivå 4
Mono- and Diglycerides of Fatty Acids An emulsifier from fatty acids — a strong signal of ultra processed food
E476 🫣 Nivå 4
Polyglycerol Polyricinoleate An emulsifier in cheap chocolate — used to replace cocoa butter
E621 🫣 Nivå 4
Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) A flavour enhancer — makes savoury foods taste more intense
Glucose Syrup 🫣 Nivå 4
Liquid sugar made from starch — spikes blood sugar faster than table sugar
High Fructose Corn Syrup 🫣 Nivå 4
High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) An industrial sweetener linked to obesity and metabolic issues
Aspartame 🫣 Nivå 4
An artificial sweetener — 200x sweeter than sugar, zero calories
Sucralose 🫣 Nivå 4
An artificial sweetener made from sugar — sold as Splenda
Maltodextrin 🫣 Nivå 4
A starch-derived powder — spikes blood sugar faster than table sugar
Stevia 😊 Nivå 2
Stevia (E960) A natural sweetener from a plant — one of the cleaner sweet alternatives
Acesulfame K 🫣 Nivå 4
Acesulfame Potassium (E950) A very common artificial sweetener — often used alongside aspartame
Sorbitol 🤔 Nivå 3
Sorbitol (E420) A sugar alcohol — less sweet than sugar but can cause digestive issues
BHA / BHT 🫣 Nivå 4
Butylated Hydroxyanisole / Butylated Hydroxytoluene Synthetic antioxidants — banned in some countries, still used in others
Calcium Propionate 🤔 Nivå 3
Calcium Propionate (E282) An anti-mould agent in bread — why supermarket bread lasts weeks
Sulphites 🤔 Nivå 3
Sulphites / Sulfites (E220-E228) Preservatives in wine and dried fruit — can trigger reactions in sensitive people
Palm Oil 🫣 Nivå 4
Cheap vegetable fat found in almost everything — major environmental concern
Hydrogenated Fat 🫣 Nivå 4
Hydrogenated / Partially Hydrogenated Fat Industrial trans fats — strongly linked to heart disease
Interesterified Fat 🫣 Nivå 4
A replacement for trans fats — newer, less studied, still concerning
Rapeseed Oil 😊 Nivå 2
Rapeseed Oil / Canola Oil A common cooking oil — one of the cleaner vegetable oils
Natural Flavours 🤔 Nivå 3
Natural Flavours / Natural Flavouring Sounds wholesome — but 'natural' can mean almost anything
Artificial Flavours 🫣 Nivå 4
Artificial Flavours / Artificial Flavouring Chemically synthesised flavours — a clear sign of ultra processing
Yeast Extract 🤔 Nivå 3
Concentrated yeast flavour — adds umami but is very high in sodium
Hydrolysed Protein 🫣 Nivå 4
Hydrolysed Vegetable Protein (HVP) Processed protein used as a cheap flavour enhancer — contains natural MSG
Modified Starch 🫣 Nivå 4
Chemically altered starch — thickens sauces and soups industrially
Xanthan Gum 🤔 Nivå 3
Xanthan Gum (E415) A thickener made by fermenting sugar — common in gluten-free products
Guar Gum 🤔 Nivå 3
Guar Gum (E412) A natural thickener from guar beans — one of the cleaner thickeners
Pectin 😊 Nivå 2
Pectin (E440) Natural gelling agent from fruit peel — the same stuff in homemade jam
Locust Bean Gum 😊 Nivå 2
Locust Bean Gum (E410) A natural thickener from carob seeds — one of the cleanest thickeners
Cellulose 🫣 Nivå 4
Cellulose (E460) Plant fibre used as a filler — sometimes made from wood pulp
Natural
Natural / 100% Natural Means almost nothing legally — don't be fooled by this label
No Added Sugar
No sugar was added — but it might still be very sweet from other sources
Whole Grain
Whole Grain / Wholegrain A real nutritional benefit — but the label often appears on processed products too. Don't stop at the front of the pack.
Low Fat
Low Fat / Reduced Fat / Fat Free Fat is removed — then sugar and additives are added to compensate for lost flavour
Light / Lite
Reduced in something — but often replaced with something worse
Organic
Organic / Ekologisk Grown without synthetic pesticides — but doesn't mean unprocessed