Kraft Macaroni and Cheese

Name: Kraft Macaroni and Cheese
Brand: Kraft

12Avoid

Breakdown

Ultra-processed · 1 contaminant flagged · 3 ingredients to avoid

Includes lab results from its product family: Kraft Mac & Cheese Dinner (boxed, sauce packet)

100

Lab-measured contaminants

Measured against published safety limits

−25

cadmium−25

Ingredients

−53

folic acid−12

sodium triphosphate−12

sodium phosphate−11

niacin−4

ferrous sulfate−4

3 smaller deductions−10

Processing

−10

NOVA 4: ultra-processed−10

Final score12

Contaminants · 4

1 at/over limit

From lab tests of this product’s family

Kraft Mac & Cheese Dinner (boxed, sauce packet)

This product wasn’t tested · results may differ

In the family’s tests: measured by an independent lab and compared against published safety limits.

Cadmium7.32 ppbof 5 ppb

Over the limit — 1.5×FDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.005 mg/L

Measured in: Original Mac and Cheese Dinner

ArsenicNDof 10 ppb

Not detectedFDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.010 mg/L (= EPA MCL)

Measured in: Original Mac and Cheese Dinner

LeadNDof 5 ppb

Not detectedFDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.005 mg/L

Measured in: Original Mac and Cheese Dinner

MercuryNDof 2 ppb

Not detectedFDA bottled-water Standard of Quality, 21 CFR 165.110(b) — 0.002 mg/L

Measured in: Original Mac and Cheese Dinner

Ingredients · 13

GoodCautionAvoid

,,,,,,,,,,,,

Healthier swaps

Same shelf, cleaner ingredients

Browse Pasta & Noodles

Common questions

Is Kraft Macaroni and Cheese healthy?

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese scores 12/100 on Tallow — our avoid band. That number comes from what is on the label: the ingredients, how processed it is, and what it is packaged in, plus lab results from its product family, Kraft Mac & Cheese Dinner (boxed, sauce packet). It is not a verdict on your diet — Tallow does not weigh calories, portion size or how often you eat it, so a high score means the ingredients are clean, not that the food is unlimited.

What is in Kraft Macaroni and Cheese?

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese lists 13 ingredients, starting with Wheat Flour, Niacin, Ferrous Sulfate, Riboflavin and Folic Acid. Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight, so the first few make up most of what you are eating.

Does Kraft Macaroni and Cheese contain seed oils?

No. Nothing in Kraft Macaroni and Cheese’s ingredient list matches a seed oil — canola, soybean, corn, cottonseed, grapeseed, sunflower, safflower, rice bran or peanut oil, or an unspecified "vegetable oil".

How processed is Kraft Macaroni and Cheese?

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is NOVA group 4: ultra-processed. That is the top of the scale and the classification the score penalises most heavily.

How does Kraft Macaroni and Cheese compare to other pasta & noodles?

At 12/100 Kraft Macaroni and Cheese scores worse than most pasta & noodles we have scored. A higher-scoring option in pasta & noodles is Rao's Homemade Spaghetti at 100/100.

Is Kraft Macaroni and Cheese organic?

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese is not certified organic in our data.

Has Kraft Macaroni and Cheese been lab tested?

Not this product itself. It shares a base recipe (Wheat/durum macaroni with powdered cheese sauce (whey, milk fat, tapioca); no cocoa, rice, nut or protein powder) with the other products in its family, Kraft Mac & Cheese Dinner (boxed, sauce packet), and 1 product in its family has been lab tested. This product is scored with the worst result for each contaminant across those tests. Those results are in the family's Contaminants section above; its own results may differ.

Does Kraft Macaroni and Cheese contain heavy metals?

Kraft Macaroni and Cheese itself has not been tested for heavy metals, but other products in its family, which share its base recipe, have: a lab detected cadmium at 7.32 ppb against a 5 ppb limit in Original Mac and Cheese Dinner. This product is scored with the worst result for each contaminant across those tests. Its own results may differ.

Full methodology: how we score products.