Food Quality Guideby KarbCoach

Food Quality Guide by KarbCoach

Great Value Premium Shells & Cheese Reduced Fat Pasta With A Creamy Cheese Sauce, Shells & Cheese: Longevity analysis

Updated 2026-08-22 · Great Value

Quick answer

Special Occasion Choice

Great Value premium shells & cheese reduced fat pasta with a creamy cheese sauce, shells & cheese received a Longevity Score of 60 out of 100 (special occasion choice). Moderate protein, but high sodium and additives. Strengths include moderate protein content and low in saturated fat, while main considerations include high sodium content, additives, and refined carbohydrates.

Longevity Score 60/100

What helped the score?

  • Moderate protein content
  • Low in saturated fat

What held the score back?

  • High sodium content
  • Contains additives
  • Refined carbohydrates

You are viewing the nutrition and longevity perspective. Switch to Food Integrity for ingredients and processing.

Source data, GTIN, and Food Quality Guide analysis details

Product facts

Product
Great Value Premium Shells & Cheese Reduced Fat Pasta With A Creamy Cheese Sauce, Shells & Cheese
GTIN / UPC
00078742163505
Serving size
113 GRM (1/3 BOX (MAKES ABOUT 1 CUP PREPARED))
Source data — ingredients
Ingredient list from product label data (see Sources)
Food Quality Guide analysis
Independent Longevity and Food Integrity scorecards. See methodology under Sources.
Data last verified

Great Value

Premium Shells & Cheese Reduced Fat Pasta With A Creamy Cheese Sauce, Shells & Cheese

Special Occasion Choice

KarbCoach Recommendation

Special Occasion Choice

Moderate protein, but high sodium and additives.

What Stands Out

High Protein

13g protein

26% DV

High Sodium

920mg sodium

40% DV

Low Fiber

0g fiber

0% DV

Refined Grains

Refined flour

Contains Seed Oils

Canola oil

DV = Percent of Daily Value based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Key Positives

  • Moderate protein content
  • Low in saturated fat

Key Concerns

  • High sodium content
  • Contains additives
  • Refined carbohydrates

Ingredient Signals

Primary protein

Cheddar cheese

Processing signals

Refined flour

Additives

MaltodextrinSodium phosphateSodium alginateXanthan gumSorbic acid

Seed oils

Canola oil

Ingredients

Ingredient list

ENRICHED MACARONI PRODUCT (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, FERROUS SULFATE, THIAMINE MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), CHEESE SAUCE (WATER, CHEDDAR CHEESE [PASTEURIZED MILK, CHEESE CULTURE, SALT, ENZYMES], WHEY, CORN SYRUP SOLIDS, MALTODEXTRIN, NON-FAT DRY MILK, SALT, SODIUM PHOSPHATE, NATURAL FLAVORS, CANOLA OIL, WHOLE MILK POWDER, COLORS ADDED [PAPRIKA EXTRACT, BETA CAROTENE], SODIUM ALGINATE, MONO AND DIGLYCERIDES, XANTHAN GUM, SORBIC ACID [PRESERVATIVE], LACTIC ACID).

Formulations can vary — check the package label for the final word.

Macronutrients

Calories

350

18% DV

Total Carbs

59g

21% DV

Protein

13g

26% DV

Saturated Fat

3g

15% DV

Fiber

0g

0% DV

Net Carbs

59g

21% DV

Sugar

7g

Total Fat

7g

9% DV

Sodium

920mg

40% DV

Unsaturated Fat

4g

DV = Percent of Daily Value based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Nutrition at a Glance

Nutrition at a Glance
NutrientAmount% Daily Value
Calories35018% DV
Total Carbs59g21% DV
Protein13g26% DV
Saturated Fat3g15% DV
Fiber0g0% DV
Net Carbs59g21% DV
Sugar7g—
Total Fat7g9% DV
Sodium920mg40% DV
Unsaturated Fat4g—

DV = Percent of Daily Value based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Amounts are per labeled serving from source data. Check the package for the final values.

Longevity scores estimate how this product’s nutrition and ingredient profile fit longer-term eating patterns. Formulations can vary — check the package label. Not medical advice. Some nutrient values may be estimated when the label is incomplete.

How this product may fit different goals

The same food can look different depending on what matters most to you. Here is a general preview of how this product may align with several common goals.

  • Low-Spike Stability

    Watch-outs

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing Low-Spike Stability, the analysis identifies considerations that may matter more than the general product score alone.

    A consideration: Higher net carbs (59g)

    This product has 2 additional signals for this goal.

    See more for this goal

  • Heart-Healthy Eating

    Watch-outs

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing Heart-Healthy Eating, the analysis identifies considerations that may matter more than the general product score alone.

    A consideration: Higher sodium (919.8mg)

    See more for this goal

  • GLP-1 Eating Support

    Mixed

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing GLP-1 Eating Support, the same nutrition and ingredient data show both supportive signals and tradeoffs.

    A tradeoff: Sweetener/sugar ingredients (Mentions "syrup", "maltodextrin", "corn syrup". See ingredients for details.)

    This product has 1 additional signal for this goal.

    See more for this goal

  • Low Sugar Lifestyle

    Watch-outs

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing Low Sugar Lifestyle, the analysis identifies considerations that may matter more than the general product score alone.

    A consideration: Sweetener/sugar ingredients (Mentions "syrup", "maltodextrin", "corn syrup". See ingredients for details.)

    See more for this goal

  • Appetite & Portion Awareness

    Mixed

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing Appetite & Portion Awareness, the same nutrition and ingredient data show both supportive signals and tradeoffs.

    A tradeoff: Sweetener/sugar ingredients (Mentions "syrup", "maltodextrin", "corn syrup". See ingredients for details.)

    This product has 1 additional signal for this goal.

    See more for this goal

  • Athletic Fueling

    Supportive

    Athletic Performance

    For someone prioritizing Athletic Fueling, the available data suggest this product may align in helpful ways.

    A supportive signal: Available carbohydrates (59g)

    This product has 1 additional signal for this goal.

    See more for this goal

See how this product fits your goals

Choose what matters most to you and explore a more detailed interpretation of this product's nutrition, ingredients, and tradeoffs.

Personalize this analysis

Understanding the Longevity analysis

What the Longevity analysis evaluates

The Longevity analysis looks at how a food fits broader dietary patterns over time. It combines nutritional composition with processing and ingredient-quality considerations, including ideas that originated in Meal Power Points and Food Integrity. The Longevity Score summarizes that wider picture on a 0–100 scale. It is educational context for packaged foods, not medical advice and not a guarantee of health outcomes.

Nutrients, balance, processing, and ingredients

Nutritional composition matters: protein, fiber, carbohydrates, glucose-related characteristics, fats, sodium, and micronutrients all influence how a food may support or challenge different dietary goals. Processing level and ingredient quality still count, because formulation can change the practical meaning of an otherwise tidy nutrient panel. Longevity treats those dimensions together rather than as a single nutrient number.

Who may prioritize Longevity

People following low-carbohydrate, keto-style, high-protein, glucose-conscious, or longevity-focused eating patterns often start with the Longevity analysis. It is also useful when you want one place that connects macros and micros with how processed the food is and how the ingredient list reads. The Longevity Score is designed for that broader comparison across products.

How Longevity differs from Food Integrity

Food Integrity is the focused analysis of processing, ingredients, additives, purity, and transparency. Longevity is the broader analysis of nutritional composition, metabolic and dietary characteristics, processing, and ingredient quality. A strong nutritional profile may still deserve closer Food Integrity review when additives, oils, sweeteners, or processing level raise questions the nutrient panel does not answer on its own.

Why the analyses overlap—and why to review both

The overlap is intentional. Food Integrity–related characteristics contribute to Longevity, while Food Integrity remains separately useful for deeper formulation detail. The two views are meant to complement each other, not cancel each other out. Some people reasonably prioritize one analysis based on their goals; reviewing both can reveal tradeoffs that one score alone may not show.

Common questions about this product

Is Great Value Premium Shells & Cheese Reduced Fat Pasta With A Creamy Cheese Sauce, Shells & Cheese highly processed?

Food Integrity lists processing level as Highly processed. That reflects formulation and processing signals from the ingredient analysis — not a medical or regulatory classification.

Why are the Longevity and Food Integrity scores different?

Longevity emphasizes nutrition per serving and longer-term dietary alignment. Food Integrity emphasizes ingredients, additives, processing, and label transparency. The same product can score differently on those lenses.

How much fiber is in one serving?

Great Value Premium Shells & Cheese Reduced Fat Pasta With A Creamy Cheese Sauce, Shells & Cheese shows about 0g of fiber per labeled serving in the Longevity nutrition facts.

Does it contain added sugar?

Great Value Premium Shells & Cheese Reduced Fat Pasta With A Creamy Cheese Sauce, Shells & Cheese: 6.99g total sugar per serving. Confirm the current package Nutrition Facts and ingredient list.

What helped the Longevity Score?

Key positives called out in the analysis include: Moderate protein content; Low in saturated fat.

What prevented a perfect Longevity Score?

Key concerns noted include: High sodium content; Contains additives; Refined carbohydrates.

Who might evaluate this product differently?

People prioritizing different goals (for example lower carbs, higher protein, or minimally processed eating) may weigh the same pasta dinners differently. Use the goal preview on this page, then personalize in KarbCoach for your priorities.

Other published analyses in Pasta Dinners, selected from the same Food Quality Guide catalog.

Source data and Food Quality Guide analysis

  1. Public label databases (including USDA FoodData Central and Open Food Facts) — Possible sources for package ingredients and nutrition.
  2. Food Quality Guide analysis (Longevity and Food Integrity) — Independent Longevity and Food Integrity scorecards.
  3. How the Longevity Score is calculated
  4. How the Food Integrity Score is calculated
  5. Scoring models: KarbCoach Longevity and Food Integrity.
  6. Independent analysis. No manufacturer affiliation.
  7. Formulations can vary by region, size, and packaging. Check the package label for ingredients, allergens, and nutrition. Not medical advice — do not use this site or the KarbCoach mobile app for allergy or health decisions. Full sources and safety details.
Label accuracy and safety information

Formulations can vary by region, size, and packaging. Check the package label for ingredients, allergens, and nutrition. Not medical advice — do not use this site or the KarbCoach mobile app for allergy or health decisions.

Sources, citations & safety

See how this item lines up with your goals

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