WHAT NOVA SAYS
Where Rapeseed Oil Fits
NOVA Group 2 covers processed culinary ingredients obtained from foods or from nature. Common examples include oils, butter, sugar and salt. They are normally used with Group 1 foods to cook, season or prepare meals, rather than eaten on their own as complete products.
Rapeseed oil fits this group because it is an oil extracted from a food crop and used as a culinary ingredient. NOVA allows processes such as pressing and refining within Group 2, so industrial refining alone does not make a plain cooking oil Group 4.
The classification rule
Rapeseed oil alone should not make a product ultra-processed. A Group 4 classification depends on the product as a whole, including ingredients of no or rare culinary use, cosmetic additives, processing purpose and the overall design of the formulation.
Why it is confusing
2 Different Questions Are Often Mixed Together
Rapeseed oil sits at the centre of 2 related but separate conversations. Mixing them together is what makes the answer appear less clear than it really is.
Question 1: How does NOVA classify it?
NOVA classifies plain rapeseed oil as a Group 2 processed culinary ingredient. On that question, the answer is clear: it is not Group 4.
Question 2: Is refined rapeseed oil heavily industrially processed?
Sometimes, yes. Refined rapeseed oil can involve several industrial processing steps. That is why some people use “ultra-processed” in a broader, everyday sense, even though that is not the same as the NOVA Group 4 classification.
From that perspective, refined rapeseed oil may be described as “ultra-processed” because commercial production can involve extraction, degumming, neutralisation, bleaching and deodorisation, and in some production systems solvent extraction.
Under the NOVA classification, however, plain refined rapeseed oil remains a Group 2 processed culinary ingredient rather than a Group 4 ultra-processed food. NOVA does not classify foods simply by how many manufacturing steps they go through. It also considers what the ingredient is, how it is used and whether the final product is an industrial formulation rather than an ordinary food.
What this means for shoppers
If your aim is to follow the NOVA classification, plain rapeseed oil is not an ultra-processed food.
If your personal goal is to minimise highly industrially processed ingredients wherever possible, you may still prefer cold-pressed rapeseed oil. Those are two different ways of thinking about food, and it’s helpful not to confuse them.
Refined vs cold-pressed
What Is the Difference?
In UK shops, rapeseed oil is usually sold in two broad forms. They are made differently and may taste different, but both remain Group 2 when sold as plain oils.
Neutral and widely used
Refined rapeseed oil is processed to remove flavour, colour and impurities. It is often cheaper, milder and more common in packaged foods.
Less refined, stronger flavour
Cold-pressed rapeseed oil is mechanically pressed and usually keeps more colour and flavour. It is still a processed culinary ingredient under NOVA.
Strict NOVA answer
Both refined and cold-pressed rapeseed oil are Group 2 when sold as plain oils. The difference may matter for taste, production method and personal preference, but it does not change NOVA’s classification of plain rapeseed oil as a Group 2 processed culinary ingredient.
Product classification
Does Rapeseed Oil Make a Product Ultra-Processed?
No. Rapeseed oil can appear in both non-UPF and ultra-processed foods. Its presence is not enough to decide the classification.
Look at what appears alongside the oil
Many supermarket loaves contain a small amount of rapeseed oil alongside flour, water, yeast and salt. The oil alone does not make the bread ultra-processed. You still need to assess the complete ingredient list.
A packaged snack containing rapeseed oil alongside flavourings, emulsifiers, modified starches, colours, sweeteners or modified oils may be Group 4 because of the overall industrial formulation.
Rapeseed oil
A processed culinary ingredient that can be used in ordinary cooking and in non-UPF packaged foods.
Modified oils
Hydrogenated and interesterified oils are more relevant NOVA 4 markers than ordinary refined rapeseed oil.
Cosmetic additives
Flavourings, colours, sweeteners, emulsifiers and similar additives can support a Group 4 classification when they are used to create or intensify taste, colour, texture or convenience.
The complete product
Classification should be based on the full ingredient list and formulation, not one ingredient in isolation.
Common misconceptions
4 Things Worth Separating
All refined oils are UPF
NOVA Group 2 includes refined culinary ingredients. Refining alone does not make plain rapeseed oil Group 4.
Cold-pressed means unprocessed
Cold-pressed oil is still extracted from a food crop, so it remains a processed culinary ingredient.
Any product containing it is UPF
Rapeseed oil can appear in simple, non-UPF foods. The rest of the formulation decides the classification.
Industrial processing always means NOVA Group 4.
Industrial processing is part of the picture, but NOVA does not classify foods solely by the amount of industrial processing involved.
Practical shopping advice
What To Do When You See Rapeseed Oil on a Label
- Do not stop at the word “rapeseed oil”. It is not an automatic UPF marker.
- Read the rest of the ingredient list. Look for flavourings, emulsifiers, sweeteners, modified starches, protein isolates, hydrogenated oils, interesterified oils and other modified ingredients.
- Consider the whole product. Ask whether it looks like an ordinary recipe made with culinary ingredients or a branded industrial formulation designed for convenience, texture and shelf life.
- Compare similar products. A simpler alternative may exist even when both products contain rapeseed oil, especially in bread, hummus, sauces, crackers and ready meals.
- Keep personal preferences separate. Choosing cold-pressed oil is reasonable, but it is not required by NOVA.
Bottom Line
The easiest approach is to stop treating rapeseed oil as an automatic warning sign. Under NOVA it is a Group 2 processed culinary ingredient. Read the whole ingredient list and decide whether the product is an ordinary food made with culinary ingredients or a Group 4 industrial formulation.
If the only concern is plain rapeseed oil, the product needs a wider check rather than an automatic UPF verdict.
That is the approach used throughout No More UPF: NOVA first, processing context second, and the whole product always.
Sources
Further Reading & References
Sources used for the NOVA classification and wider processing context.
- Monteiro CA, Cannon G, Levy RB, Moubarac JC, Louzada MLC, et al. Ultra-processed foods: what they are and how to identify them. Public Health Nutrition. 2019.
- Monteiro CA, Cannon G, Moubarac JC, et al. The UN Decade of Nutrition, the NOVA food classification and the trouble with ultra-processing. Public Health Nutrition. 2018
- Monteiro CA, Cannon G, Lawrence M, Louzada MLC, Machado PP. Ultra-processed foods, diet quality, and health using the NOVA classificaiton system. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
- European Food Information Council. Food processing and classification context.
What is the purpose of the Rapeseed oil in processed food. For example a jar of tomato pasta sauce
Thanks for your question! Rapeseed oil is commonly added to processed foods to improve flavour and texture and to help keep things shelf-stable. It’s also cheap and neutral-tasting, which is why it shows up in so many products – even ones that seem quite simple like pasta sauce.