Spoon Scout

Pasta Dinners · barcode 00016000197473

Hamburger Helper, Cheeseburger Macaroni

Hamburger Helper · General Mills, Inc.

  • Lab testsNo lab has published results for this exact product.
  • RecallsNo FDA recall lists this barcode.
  • Additives1 ingredient is banned or unapproved somewhere. Which
  • TypicalFDA's tests of pasta dinners show what's typical. See levels

Additives with restrictions somewhere

From the ingredient list on file (label data dated 2021-03-19). Recipes change, so check the package you have.

Partially hydrogenated oils

  • US (FDA): Authorization revoked FDA determined in 2015 that they are no longer generally recognized as safe; makers had to remove them, with final compliance dates in 2018-2020. Labels on file may predate that. (80 FR 34650 (2015)) Source
  • Texas: Warning label required from 2027-01-01 Labels developed on or after January 1, 2027 must warn that the product contains an ingredient not recommended for consumption in Australia, Canada, the EU or the UK. (SB 25 (2025)) Source
  • Louisiana: Warning label required from 2028-01-01 Products containing it must carry a QR code disclosure from January 1, 2028. (SB 14, Act 463 (2025)) Source

Typical for pasta dinners

What FDA found when it bought and tested this kind of food across the US. These are not tests of this product.

FDA samples behind these numbers
  • Lead in Macaroni and cheese, prepared from boxed mix: found in 0 of 3, all below 4 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Lead in Noodles, egg, enriched, boiled: found in 2 of 3, average 3.63, highest 6.6 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Lead in Spaghetti, enriched, boiled: found in 0 of 3, all below 4 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Cadmium in Macaroni and cheese, prepared from boxed mix: found in 3 of 3, average 11.1, highest 13 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Cadmium in Noodles, egg, enriched, boiled: found in 3 of 3, average 22.3, highest 26 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Cadmium in Spaghetti, enriched, boiled: found in 3 of 3, average 27.7, highest 32 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Mercury in Macaroni and cheese, prepared from boxed mix: found in 0 of 3, all below 1 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Mercury in Noodles, egg, enriched, boiled: found in 0 of 3, all below 1 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Mercury in Spaghetti, enriched, boiled: found in 0 of 3, all below 1 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Arsenic (total) in Macaroni and cheese, prepared from boxed mix: found in 0 of 3, all below 3 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Arsenic (total) in Noodles, egg, enriched, boiled: found in 0 of 3, all below 3 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Arsenic (total) in Spaghetti, enriched, boiled: found in 0 of 3, all below 3 ppb (2018-2020)
  • Perchlorate in Macaroni and cheese, prepared from box mix: found in 19 of 20, average 3.5, highest 5 ppb (2008-2012)
  • Perchlorate in Noodles, egg, enriched, boiled: found in 3 of 20, average 0.45, highest 7 ppb (2008-2012)
  • Perchlorate in Spaghetti, enriched, boiled: found in 0 of 20, all below 1 ppb (2008-2012)

"Typically" is FDA's middle sample. Daily amounts use the long-run average and each chemical's daily limit (EPA reference dose, or FDA's level for lead) for a 33-lb toddler and a 154-lb adult. ppb = micrograms per kilogram of food. Source: FDA Total Diet Study.

Not tested

No published results for this product cover: Metals, Perchlorate, Phthalates (plastic softeners), Phthalate substitutes, Bisphenols. That means nobody has published a test, not that these are absent.

Ingredients (from the label)

ENRICHED ELBOW MACARONI (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, FERROUS SULFATE, THIAMIN MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), CORN STARCH, ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), SALT, SUGAR, RICOTTA CHEESE* (WHEY, MILKFAT, LACTIC ACID, SALT), TOMATO*, ONION*, NATURAL FLAVOR, MODIFIED CORN STARCH, CITRIC ACID, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN OIL, WHEY, MALTODEXTRIN, SPICE, DISODIUM INOSINATE AND GUANYLATE, COLOR (YELLOW LAKES 5 & 6, YELLOWS 5 & 6), MONOGLYCERIDES, CHEDDAR CHEESE* (MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES), SODIUM PHOSPHATE, SILICON DIOXIDE (ANTICAKING AGENT), ENZYME MODIFIED CHEDDAR CHEESE (MILK, CHEESE CULTURES, SALT, ENZYMES.

From USDA FoodData Central, label dated 2021-03-19. Labels change; check the package.

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