Ben & Jerry's Half Baked
Photo: Open Food Facts contributors (CC BY-SA)

Ice creams

Ben & Jerry's Half Baked

1 pt

Score

Bad 7 out of 100 Medium confidence
  • Ultra-processed
  • High in sugar
  • High in saturated fat
  • Contains added sugars
  • Contains emulsifiers studied for gut effects
  • Contains seed oils
  • No synthetic dyes

Why it scores 7

Ben & Jerry's Half Baked scores 7 out of 100 (Bad) under GoodSwap’s published rules. What moved the score most:

  1. minus 20 points Invert sugar: An added sugar. Strong
  2. minus 20 points Sugar: An added sugar. Strong
  3. minus 18 points Ultra-processed (NOVA 4): Classified NOVA 4: made with industrial ingredients and additives. Strong

Every line of the math is on The Receipt below, with its evidence tier and sources.

The Receipt

Half Baked

START100

Ingredients

  • Invert sugar minus 20 points
    Strong An added sugar. [1][2][3]
  • Sugar minus 20 points
    Strong An added sugar. [1][2][3]
  • Brown sugar minus 10 points
    Strong An added sugar. [1][2][3]
subtotal−50

Processing

  • Ultra-processed (NOVA 4) minus 18 points
    Strong Classified NOVA 4: made with industrial ingredients and additives. [4]
  • 5 kinds of ultra-processing markers minus 6 points
    Emerging Industrial additive classes found: color (added), emulsifier, flavoring, industrial sugar or starch hydrolysate and thickener, stabilizer or gelling agent. [4]
subtotal−24

Nutrition per 100 g

  • Sugars 26.2 g / 100 g minus 11 points
    Strong Very high in sugar. [1]
  • Saturated fat 8.5 g / 100 g minus 7 points
    Strong Very high in saturated fat. [5]
  • Energy 262 kcal / 100 g minus 1 points
    Info Energy-dense for its weight. [2]
subtotal−19

TOTAL 7Bad

100 − 93 = 7

Can’t score above 79. Contains invert sugar, an ingredient of high concern. [1][2][3]

Can’t score above 79. High in saturated fat and sugars (above the front-of-pack "high" level). [6]


GTIN 00076840101320 · 2026-07-19

score v1.3.0 · kb 2026.10.11

Medium confidence

Same product, same score. Every time.

Nutrition per 100 g

Energy262 kcal
Fat13.5 g
Saturated fat8.5 g
Trans fat0.4 g
Carbohydrates31.9 g
Sugars26.2 g
Added sugars22 g
Fiber1.4 g
Protein4.3 g
Salt0.2 g

Serving: 0.33 container (141 g)

Ingredients

High Moderate Not recognized Tap an ingredient for its evidence and rules.
Label text, as published

CREAM, LIQUID SUGAR (SUGAR, WATER), SKIM MILK, WATER, SUGAR, WHEAT FLOUR, BROWN SUGAR, COCOA (PROCESSED WITH ALKALI), EGG YOLKS, EGGS, COCOA, EXPELLER PRESSED SOYBEAN OIL, SOYBEAN OIL, INVERT SUGAR, CHOCOLATE LIQUOR, EGG WHITES, SALT, GUAR GUM, MOLASSES, VANILLA EXTRACT, COCOA BUTTER, NATURAL FLAVOR, CARRAGEENAN, TAPIOCA FLOUR, MALTED BARLEY FLOUR, BAKING SODA, SOY LECITHIN, ANNATTO EXTRACT (FOR COLOR), MILK, TURMERIC EXTRACT (FOR COLOR)

Allergens and diets

Contains: Milk, Soy, Wheat, Gluten, Egg

  • Not vegan
  • Not gluten-free
  • Palm-oil-free

Always check the package: recipes change.

Sources

  1. Guideline: sugars intake for adults and children

    World Health Organization · Mar 4, 2015 · Agency assessment

    “In both adults and children, WHO recommends reducing the intake of free sugars to less than 10% of total energy intake”

    who.int

  2. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030

    U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture · January 2026 · Regulator

    “Limit foods and beverages that include artificial flavors, petroleum-based dyes, artificial preservatives, and low-calorie non-nutritive sweeteners.”

    cdn.realfood.gov

  3. Added and free sugars should be as low as possible

    European Food Safety Authority · Feb 28, 2022 · Agency assessment

    “Sugar consumption is a known cause of dental caries.”

    efsa.europa.eu

  4. Ultra-processed foods: what they are and how to identify them

    Public Health Nutrition · April 2019 · Peer-reviewed

    doi.org

  5. Saturated fatty acid and trans-fatty acid intake for adults and children: WHO guideline

    World Health Organization · Jul 17, 2023 · Agency assessment

    “WHO recommends that adults and children reduce saturated fatty acid intake to 10% of total energy intake (strong recommendation).”

    who.int

  6. Guide to creating a front of pack (FoP) nutrition label for pre-packed products sold through retail outlets

    Department of Health and Social Care / Food Standards Agency (GOV.UK) · Nov 8, 2016 · Regulator

    “Table 3: Criteria for drinks (per 100ml)”

    assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  7. Ultra-processed food exposure and adverse health outcomes: umbrella review of epidemiological meta-analyses

    BMJ · Feb 28, 2024 · Peer-reviewed

    “Greater exposure to ultra-processed food was associated with a higher risk of adverse health outcomes, especially cardiometabolic, common mental disorder, and mortality outcomes.”

    doi.org

  8. Dietary emulsifiers impact the mouse gut microbiota promoting colitis and metabolic syndrome

    Nature · Mar 5, 2015 · Peer-reviewed

    “carboxymethylcellulose and polysorbate-80, induced low-grade inflammation and obesity/metabolic syndrome in wild-type hosts and promoted robust colitis in mice predisposed to this disorder.”

    doi.org

  9. Randomized Controlled-Feeding Study of Dietary Emulsifier Carboxymethylcellulose Reveals Detrimental Impacts on the Gut Microbiota and Metabolome

    Gastroenterology · March 2022 · Peer-reviewed

    “Relative to control subjects, CMC consumption modestly increased postprandial abdominal discomfort and perturbed gut microbiota composition in a way that reduced its diversity.”

    doi.org

  10. Food additive emulsifiers and risk of cardiovascular disease in the NutriNet-Santé cohort: prospective cohort study

    BMJ · Sep 6, 2023 · Peer-reviewed

    “This study found positive associations between risk of CVD and intake of five individual and two groups of food additive emulsifiers widely used in industrial foods.”

    doi.org

  11. Re-evaluation of the traditional diet-heart hypothesis: analysis of recovered data from Minnesota Coronary Experiment (1968-73)

    BMJ · Apr 12, 2016 · Peer-reviewed

    “replacement of saturated fat in the diet with linoleic acid effectively lowers serum cholesterol but does not support the hypothesis that this translates to a lower risk of death from coronary heart disease or all causes.”

    doi.org

  12. Dietary Linoleic Acid and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Prospective Cohort Studies

    Circulation · Oct 28, 2014 · Peer-reviewed

    “These data provide support for current recommendations to replace saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat for primary prevention of CHD.”

    doi.org