How Ultra-Processed Foods Impact Your Health

3. Statistical overview

Research shows that more than half of the food consumed in high-income countries, including the United States, the UK, and Canada, are ultra-processed. The United States eats the most, with ultra-processed foods making up 58 percent of daily energy intake.

In middle-income countries like Mexico, Brazil, and Chile, they make up between a third and a fifth of total daily caloric intake. This research also shows that these figures are rising. In high-income countries, sales of ultra-processed foods are growing by about one percent a year; in middle-income countries, sales are growing by as much as ten percent a year.