Houmous is one of the better-behaved products in the chilled aisle. The traditional recipe is five or six ingredients, all of them recognisable, and a surprising number of supermarket tubs stick to it.
Every tub below lists no additives — no preservative, no flavouring, no stabiliser. All were pulled from Open Food Facts, filtered to zero additives, then checked against the live Cull database.
UK houmous with no additives
| Product | NOVA | Cull score |
|---|---|---|
| Moorish — Smoked Houmous61% chickpeas — the highest here | 3 | 72/100 |
| Tesco — Houmous55% chickpeas | 3 | 58/100 |
| Sainsbury's — Organic Houmous | 3 | 58/100 |
| Sainsbury's — Sweet Red Pepper Houmous | 3 | 58/100 |
| Marks & Spencer — Organic Houmous with Extra Virgin Olive Oil | 3 | 44/100 |
| Tesco — Houmous (41% chickpeas) | 3 | 44/100 |
| Tesco — Organic Houmous | 3 | 44/100 |
| Sainsbury's — Classic Houmous | 3 | 44/100 |
Checked 31 July 2026against Open Food Facts and the live Cull database. Recipes change without notice and supermarket own-brands are reformulated regularly — scan the pack in front of you rather than trusting any list, including this one. Scores are Cull's own standard, not an official rating.
Why houmous is NOVA 3
Chickpeas, sesame, garlic and lemon are NOVAgroup 1. Oil and salt are group 2 culinary ingredients. Blend them and you have group 3 — a processed food, and one that has been made the same way for a very long time.
There is nothing in a traditional houmous recipe that could push it to group 4. When a tub does land there, it is because something was added to extend its life or its flavour: a preservative such as potassium sorbate, or a flavouring in the fancier varieties. Our full guide to houmous works through the category, and the additives guide explains which classes count.
The number that moves the score is chickpeas
Look at the spread: 72 down to 44, across tubs with equally clean labels. Nothing separates them but the recipe ratio.
The tub scoring 72 is 61% chickpeas. The tubs scoring 44 are closer to 40%, with the balance made up by oil and water. Chickpeas bring protein and fibre; oil brings calories. Neither version has done anything wrong, and neither has added an additive — one is simply more chickpea and less oil than the other.
This is the most practical thing on the page. If you want a better tub of houmous, do not scan for additives — most tubs pass that test. Read the chickpea percentage on the front, which UK labelling requires manufacturers to declare.