Healthy Food Guideby KarbCoach

Healthy Food Guide by KarbCoach

King Arthur Baking Company Golden Yellow Cake & Cupcake Mix: Longevity analysis

Updated 2026-10-19 · King Arthur Baking Company

Quick answer

Special Occasion Choice

King Arthur Baking Company golden yellow cake & cupcake mix received a Longevity Score of 38 out of 100 (special occasion choice). Refined-flour, sugar-led baking mix with very little fiber or protein; a dessert-style base rather than a whole-food staple. Strengths include short, recognizable ingredient list, no artificial colors or sweeteners listed, and no saturated fat per serving, while main considerations include cane sugar is first ingredient; 23g sugar per serving, refined wheat flour with under 1g fiber, and sodium near 290mg per serving from baking powder and salt.

Longevity Score 38/100

What helped the score?

  • Short, recognizable ingredient list
  • No artificial colors or sweeteners listed
  • No saturated fat per serving

What held the score back?

  • Cane sugar is first ingredient; 23g sugar per serving
  • Refined wheat flour with under 1g fiber
  • Sodium near 290mg per serving from baking powder and salt

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

Source data, GTIN, and Healthy Food Guide analysis details

Product facts

Product
King Arthur Baking Company Golden Yellow Cake & Cupcake Mix
Category
Snacks (source: Cake, Cookie & Cupcake Mixes)
GTIN / UPC
00071012104628
Serving size
49 g (1/3 cup)
Source data — ingredients
Ingredient list from product label data (see Sources)
Healthy Food Guide analysis
Independent Longevity and Food Integrity scorecards. See methodology under Sources.
Data last verified

King Arthur Baking Company

Golden Yellow Cake & Cupcake Mix

Special Occasion Choice

KarbCoach Recommendation

Special Occasion Choice

Refined-flour, sugar-led baking mix with very little fiber or protein; a dessert-style base rather than a whole-food staple.

What Stands Out

Very High Sugar

23g added sugar

46% DV

Low Fiber

1g fiber

3% DV

Refined Grains

Refined unbleached wheat flour

Added Sweetener

Cane sugar

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

Key Positives

  • Short, recognizable ingredient list
  • No artificial colors or sweeteners listed
  • No saturated fat per serving

Key Concerns

  • Cane sugar is first ingredient; 23g sugar per serving
  • Refined wheat flour with under 1g fiber
  • Sodium near 290mg per serving from baking powder and salt

Ingredient Signals

Processing signals

Refined unbleached wheat flourWheat starchLeavening system with multiple phosphate and starch components

Additives

Sodium acid pyrophosphateMonocalcium phosphateNatural flavor

Added sweeteners

Cane sugar

Ingredients

Ingredient list

CANE SUGAR, KING ARTHUR UNBLEACHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, ENZYME), WHEAT STARCH, BAKING POWDER (SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, BAKING SODA, CORN STARCH, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE), NATURAL FLAVOR, SALT.

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

Macronutrients

Calories

180

9% DV

Total Carbs

42g

15% DV

Protein

3g

6% DV

Saturated Fat

0g

0% DV

Fiber

1g

3% DV

Net Carbs

41g

15% DV

Sugar

23g

Added Sugar

23g

46% DV

Total Fat

0g

0% DV

Sodium

290mg

13% DV

Cholesterol

0mg

0% DV

Unsaturated Fat

0g

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

Nutrition at a Glance

Nutrition at a Glance
NutrientAmount% Daily Value
Calories1809% DV
Total Carbs42g15% DV
Protein3g6% DV
Saturated Fat0g0% DV
Fiber1g3% DV
Net Carbs41g15% DV
Sugar23g—
Added Sugar23g46% DV
Total Fat0g0% DV
Sodium290mg13% DV
Cholesterol0mg0% DV
Unsaturated Fat0g—

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 (41g)

    This product has 3 additional signals for this goal.

    See more for this goal

  • Heart-Healthy Eating

    Supportive

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing Heart-Healthy Eating, the available data suggest this product may align in helpful ways.

    A supportive signal: Low saturated fat (0g)

    See more for this goal

  • GLP-1 Eating Support

    Watch-outs

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing GLP-1 Eating Support, the analysis identifies considerations that may matter more than the general product score alone.

    A consideration: Lower protein (3g)

    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: Higher sugar (23g)

    This product has 2 additional signals for this goal.

    See more for this goal

  • Appetite & Portion Awareness

    Watch-outs

    Metabolic Health

    For someone prioritizing Appetite & Portion Awareness, the analysis identifies considerations that may matter more than the general product score alone.

    A consideration: Higher sugar (23g)

    See more for this goal

  • Athletic Fueling

    Watch-outs

    Athletic Performance

    For someone prioritizing Athletic Fueling, the analysis identifies considerations that may matter more than the general product score alone.

    A consideration: Carbohydrate is almost entirely sugar (23g of 42g carbs)

    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 King Arthur Baking Company Golden Yellow Cake & Cupcake Mix highly processed?

Food Integrity lists processing level as Lightly 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?

King Arthur Baking Company Golden Yellow Cake & Cupcake Mix shows about 0.98g of fiber per labeled serving in the Longevity nutrition facts.

Does it contain added sugar?

King Arthur Baking Company Golden Yellow Cake & Cupcake Mix: 23g added sugar per serving; sweetener signals include Cane sugar. Confirm the current package Nutrition Facts and ingredient list.

What helped the Longevity Score?

Key positives called out in the analysis include: Short, recognizable ingredient list; No artificial colors or sweeteners listed; No saturated fat per serving.

What prevented a perfect Longevity Score?

Key concerns noted include: Cane sugar is first ingredient; 23g sugar per serving; Refined wheat flour with under 1g fiber; Sodium near 290mg per serving from baking powder and salt.

Who might evaluate this product differently?

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

Other published analyses in Snacks, selected from the same Healthy Food Guide catalog.

Source data and Healthy Food Guide analysis

  1. Public label databases (including USDA FoodData Central and Open Food Facts) — Possible sources for package ingredients and nutrition.
  2. Healthy Food 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

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