Frozen desserts
Great Value Rocky Road Ice Cream
48 fl oz/1.4 L
Score
- Ultra-processed
- High in sugar
- High in saturated fat
- Contains added sugars
- Contains emulsifiers studied for gut effects
- Contains seed oils
Why it scores 9
Great Value Rocky Road Ice Cream scores 9 out of 100 (Bad) under GoodSwap’s published rules. What moved the score most:
- minus 20 points Sugar: An added sugar. Strong
- minus 20 points Corn syrup: An added sugar. Strong
- 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.
Better ice cream
-
Strawberry Ice Cream Häagen-Dazs · 14 fl oz (414 mL) Not ultra-processed · Less sugar Score 53 out of 100 , 44 points higher -
Coffee Ice Cream Häagen-Dazs · 14 fl oz (414 mL) Not ultra-processed · Less sugar Score 51 out of 100 , 42 points higher -
Vanilla Ice Cream Chobani · 14 oz Less sugar · Less saturated fat Score 63 out of 100 , 54 points higher -
Organic Strawberry Ice Cream Straus Family Creamery · 1 PT/473 mL Not ultra-processed · No gut-studied emulsifiers Score 51 out of 100 , 42 points higher -
Sea Salt Caramel Chocolate Cosmic Bliss · 14 fl oz/414 mL Not ultra-processed · Less sugar Score 54 out of 100 , 45 points higher
The same kind of product, at least 10 points higher, sold in the US. Never paid placements.
The Receipt
Rocky Road Ice Cream
Ingredients
- Sugar minus 20 points
- Corn syrup minus 20 points
- High fructose corn syrup minus 10 points
Processing
- Ultra-processed (NOVA 4) minus 18 points
- 5 kinds of ultra-processing markers minus 6 points
Nutrition per 100 g
- Sugars 23 g / 100 g minus 11 points
- Saturated fat 5.8 g / 100 g minus 5 points
- Energy 230 kcal / 100 g minus 1 points
100 − 91 = 9
Can’t score above 79. Contains sugar, an ingredient of high concern. [1][2][3][4]
Can’t score above 79. High in saturated fat and sugars (above the front-of-pack "high" level). [7]
Nutrition per 100 g
| Energy | 230 kcal |
|---|---|
| Fat | 9.2 g |
| Saturated fat | 5.8 g |
| Trans fat | 0 g |
| Carbohydrates | 33.3 g |
| Sugars | 23 g |
| Added sugars | 17.2 g |
| Fiber | 1.1 g |
| Protein | 3.5 g |
| Salt | 0.2 g |
Serving: 0.67 cup (94 g)
Ingredients
- MILK
- CREAM
- SUGAR (high concern)
- MARSHMALLOW (CORN SYRUP, SUGAR, WATER, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, EGG ALBUMEN, PECTIN, XANTHAN GUM, VANILLA, NATURAL FLAVOR) (not recognized)
- CORN SYRUP (high concern)
- NONFAT MILK
- COCOA POWDER PROCESSED WITH ALKAN
- WHEY
- CHOCO COVERED ALMONDS (SUGAR, ALMONDS, COCONUT OIL, COCOA POWDER PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, SAFFLOWER, CANOLA OIL, COCOA POWDER, SALT, SEA SALT, SOY LECITHIN, NATURAL VANILLA EXTRACT, CORN STARCH, MILK)
- CELLULOSE GEL
- CELLULOSE GUM (moderate concern)
- MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES
- CARRAGEENAN (moderate concern)
Label text, as published
MILK, CREAM, SUGAR, MARSHMALLOW (CORN SYRUP, SUGAR, WATER, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF EGG ALBUMEN, PECTIN, XANTHAN GUM, VANILLA, NATURAL FLAVOR), CORN SYRUP, NONFAT MILK, COCOA POWDER PROCESSED WITH ALKAN, WHEY, CHOCO COVERED ALMONDS (SUGAR, ALMONDS, COCONUT OIL, COCOA POWDER PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, SAFFLOWER AND/OR CANOLA OIL, COCOA POWDER, SALT, SEA SALT, SOY LECITHIN, NATURAL VANILLA EXTRACT, CORN STARCH, MILK), CONTAINS 1% OR LESS OF CELLULOSE GEL, CELLULOSE GUM, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, CARRAGEENAN.
Allergens and diets
Contains: Milk, Tree nuts, Soy, Egg
- Not vegan
- Palm-oil-free
Always check the package: recipes change.
Sources
-
Guideline: sugars intake for adults and children
“In both adults and children, WHO recommends reducing the intake of free sugars to less than 10% of total energy intake”
who.int
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Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030
“Limit foods and beverages that include artificial flavors, petroleum-based dyes, artificial preservatives, and low-calorie non-nutritive sweeteners.”
cdn.realfood.gov
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Added and free sugars should be as low as possible
“Sugar consumption is a known cause of dental caries.”
efsa.europa.eu
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21 CFR 184.1866 High fructose corn syrup
“a sweet, nutritive saccharide mixture containing either approximately 42 or 55 percent fructose”
ecfr.gov
-
Saturated fatty acid and trans-fatty acid intake for adults and children: WHO guideline
“WHO recommends that adults and children reduce saturated fatty acid intake to 10% of total energy intake (strong recommendation).”
who.int
-
“Table 3: Criteria for drinks (per 100ml)”
assets.publishing.service.gov.uk
-
“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
-
Dietary emulsifiers impact the mouse gut microbiota promoting colitis and metabolic syndrome
“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
-
“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
-
“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
-
“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
-
“These data provide support for current recommendations to replace saturated fat with polyunsaturated fat for primary prevention of CHD.”
doi.org