The elf on the shelf
The elf on the shelf by Kellogg's has 6 tracked ingredients, with an overall safety score of 4 out of 5, in line with the 4.12/5 average across all scored products.
- Safety score in line with the 4.12/5 average across all scored products
- NOVA processing classification: group 4
How This Score Is Built
The elf on the shelf draws on FDA status, EU regulatory status, US state actions, and published research, combined into a single editorially-derived 1-5 scale (never an official government rating). 6 of its 6 tracked ingredients are scored so far; data as of 2026-09-07.
Open Food Facts, FDA, and EU regulatory records feed this score. The FDA site → has the primary record; our methodology page explains the scoring.
Where The elf on the shelf sits nationally
Average ingredient safety score vs. 58,710 other scored products in PlainIngredients
4 Top 80% higher than 20% of 58,710 scored products
Average ingredient safety score (1 = highest risk, 5 = safest), bucketed by value
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more scored products. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source PlainIngredients ingredient safety index · 2026-09-07
Ingredient Safety Breakdown
Processing Level
Ultra-processed products are formulations made mostly or entirely from substances derived from foods and additives. They typically contain ingredients not commonly used in home cooking.
Full Ingredients List
corn flour, sugar, whole grain yellow corn flour, degerminated yellow corn flour, sugar, enriched flour, niacin, reduced iron, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, folic acid, corn syrup, marshmallows, sugar, corn syrup, modified food starch, gelatin, natural flavor, contains less than 2% of corn starch, dextrose, yellow 5, yellow 6, red 40, blue 1, yellow 6, yellow 5, blue 1, BHT, niacinamide, vitamin B6, vitamin B2, vitamin B1, vitamin B12, vitamin D3, calcium pantothenate, vitamin B6 hydrochloride, folic acid, vitamin B12
Compare beyond brand
Nationwide peers by additive safety & ingredient depth
Two PlainIngredients-derived comparison paths for The elf on the shelf: nearest mean mapped additive safety score and nearest mapped ingredient count among indexable products with at least 3 scored additives, excluding same-brand siblings. Scores describe regulatory and research signals on additives, not dietary advice.
Similar mean additive safety
Nearest products by average mapped safety score. This record: 4/5.
Similar mapped ingredient depth
Nearest products by count of scored mapped additives. This record: 6.
Product Details
- Brand
- Kellogg's
- Barcode
- 0038000234118
- NOVA Group
- 4 — Ultra-processed foods
- Available In
- United States
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Frequently asked questions
Where does The elf on the shelf rank on ingredient safety?
The elf on the shelf scores 4 out of 5 for average ingredient safety, in the bottom 80% of the 58,710 products in PlainIngredients with a scored ingredient list, in line with the 4.12/5 average across all scored products.
What's behind the 4/5 rating on The elf on the shelf?
Each ingredient gets a 1-5 score (1 highest risk, 5 safest) built from FDA and EU regulatory status; The elf on the shelf's 4/5 is the average across every mapped ingredient it lists, landing it in the Low Risk tier.
Every figure on PlainIngredients is rendered directly from FDA, EU, EFSA and U.S. state regulatory records, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.