The 15 Unhealthiest Store-Bought Meatball Brands

When things are labeled "homestyle," they come with the suggestion that they're going to invoke feelings of coziness and comfort. But Walmart's Great Value meatballs might not do that once you look at the label. The Great Value line (as the name suggests) was created to offer consumers a cheaper option, and it keeps the cost of its Homestyle Meatballs down by adding in ingredients that promote bulking, emulsification, and flavor, like breadcrumbs, soy protein concentrate, and dextrose. None of these ingredients, unfortunately, are particularly nutritious. And it's curious that these meatballs have three sources of protein (beef, pork, and soy) but are fairly low in protein per serving.

However, what really catches our eye about these meatballs is the trans fats inside them. Great Value Homestyle Meatballs have 0.5 grams of trans fats per serving, and while that doesn't sound like a lot, those numbers can add up if you're getting them from other dietary sources. It's worth bearing in mind that in an ideal world, you should consume no trans fats whatsoever. Not only does your body not need them, but they can also negatively impact your cholesterol levels, contributing to the risk of chronic cardiovascular illness (via MedlinePlus).

If your kids still aren't ready to experiment with their diets, spaghetti and meatballs are usually a pretty solid bet for dinnertime. And upon the first appearance, organic food company Earth's Best's meatballs appear to hit the spot. The brand promises no antibiotics or added hormones used on the cows that supply its Mini Beef Meatballs, and the smaller size of the meat pieces seems to make it a healthier choice.

However, one look at its nutritional info and its suggested serving size tells a different story. Earth's Best advises 16 meatballs per serving, and this will supply almost half of the daily value of saturated fat for your kids. To add to this, it will provide over a fifth of their daily value for sodium. Importantly, children need fats just like adults do, and limiting them too much can have an impact on their brain development, says KidsHealth. But giving your kids too much fat, especially saturated fat, can lead to weight gain, and with that comes a host of potential health issues like high blood pressure and diabetes.

Instead, you should try to focus on healthy eating for your child, which will play a vital role in their development, and prioritize foods with unsaturated fats in them. Having said that, every kid deserves a plate of spaghetti and meatballs now and again — but it might be worth looking for a lower-sodium, lower-saturated-fat option.

Fresh by name, fresh by nature? That's the promise that Amazon seems to make with its Amazon Fresh line, which works to get your groceries on the table fast, with no impact on quality or taste. But just because its Plant-Based Meatballs arrive at your door ready to go, doesn't mean they haven't been through a lot of processing first. These meatballs are full of processed ingredients, like enriched wheat flour, methylcellulose, and wheat gluten, all of which are designed to give the product a more consistent, satisfying texture.

However, these ingredients also have drawbacks. Methylcellulose, for instance, is a thickening and bulking agent, but Cleveland Clinic notes it can also have a laxative effect. While you generally have to consume 1 gram or more daily for it to have a notable impact, there's no indication of how much is in these meatballs. Enriched wheat flour also gives us cause for concern. The word "enriched" in this ingredient name refers to the inclusion of vitamins and minerals which are lost during wheat processing. But that doesn't make it much healthier, and at the end of the day, enriched wheat flour is still a highly-refined carbohydrate, which can spike your blood sugar, and which will have limited nutritional value beyond the nutrients that are added back into it.

The products at Trader Joe's are generally pretty top-notch, and its Italian Style Meatballs seem to be too. With their larger size, these meatballs make a refreshing change to the smaller ones that you'll typically find in your freezer section, and they have a meaty, plump appearance.

But appearances can be deceiving. Inside these meatballs, in fact, there doesn't seem to be that much meat at all. You get 11 grams of protein in every two meatballs, which is far less than a lot of other alternatives on the market. And remember that as there are just four calories in every gram of protein, that means that almost 200 of those calories are coming from other sources — mainly fat. These meatballs are especially fatty, and there are 8 grams of saturated fat in each serving. It may give them a succulent, juicy texture, but it may also impact your cholesterol levels, according to Heart UK.

Additionally, Trader Joe's meatballs also contain a few grams of sugar in each serving. In savory foods, sugar can operate as a balancing element for the other flavors going on -– but it can also have somewhat of a crave-inducing effect, making you want to consume more of it. It's also worth pointing out that a lot of other meatball brands on the market don't have any sugar in their nutritional information. ‌

Wisconsin-based food company Johnsonville has been on a serious journey since it was founded in 1945. From a humble butcher's shop (in, you guessed it, Johnsonville), the outfit grew to become a nationwide sensation, and alongside its signature sausages, it also makes a variety of meatballs.

But these meatballs are far from the most nutritious ones you can find — far from it, in fact. Johnsonville Classic Italian Style Meatballs have high proportions of fat and sodium in each ball. The fat content, in particular, raises its caloric count way higher than other competitors. Additionally, these meatballs have barely any vitamins or minerals.

However, there's one ingredient included that makes these meatballs stand out as particularly worrisome. Johnsonville Italian Style Meatballs contain propyl gallate, an additive used to stop fat from spoiling. However, this ingredient has long been considered controversial, with research appearing to point toward its potential to increase cancer risk when eaten in small amounts, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest. It has been suggested that propyl gallate would benefit from further study to properly identify its effects on humans — but until then, you might want to give it a miss.

Whereas most meatball brands market their product as being well-paired with a tomato sauce, Marketside instead looks to sell its meatballs with an alternative flavor. As such, its Beef Tailgate Meatballs, which come drenched in a grape BBQ sauce, is a good choice if you're looking for something slightly different from a classic spaghetti supper.

But it's far from a good choice if you're watching your nutrition. In fact, Marketside's meatballs are far and away the least nutritious out there, with a shocking amount of sodium and added sugars. In every 140-gram serving, there are 1,430 milligrams of sodium, almost two-thirds of the amount that you should be getting every day. Additionally, there's a frightening 23 grams of added sugar, which is pretty much the full recommended allowance for women each day. For context, this is in a food item that only clocks in at 340 calories in each serving — meaning that you have to limit the added sugars and sodium significantly from everything else you eat in a day if you want to stay within the daily values.

Remember, you don't need added sugars in your diet at all. And while they make things tastier, they can also have a significant impact on your weight and heart health, says the American Heart Association. It appears that much of the sodium and added sugar content comes from the BBQ sauce, but unless you're willing to scrape it off every meatball, it's something that you're likely stuck with. ‌

Beyond Meat has only been around since 2009, but it's one of the greatest success stories of the plant-based food market. In just 14 years, the company has grown to a worth of $9 billion worldwide, and we're pretty sure it's not going to stop there. One of the company's reasons for creating plant-based meat alternatives is to promote a more nutritious diet. So it's unfortunate that its meatballs don't appear to reflect that. While its Italian Style Plant-Based Meatballs seem to indicate that it's more nutritious than other brands, it's still not the healthiest option you can go for. Beyond Meat's meatballs have pretty high levels of sodium and saturated fat.

The main problem, however, lies in the fact that there's an assumption that plant-based meat products are way healthier than meat alternatives, so they can be eaten more frequently. And that psychology can lead to people over-consuming them, and making poor nutritional choices. "The key thing is that any food that has been highly processed should be eaten mindfully," author and registered dietitian Renee McGregor told The Guardian. "So not necessarily avoided completely, but I wouldn't recommend a vegan sausage weekly due to the high salt content and most likely list of additives and preservatives." We'd imagine that McGregor might say the same about these meatballs.

Since Rosina started selling sausages in 1963, it's come a long way. In those 60 years, it's expanded not only in size but in the brands it now owns and operates. One of these, Mama Lucia, focuses exclusively on meatballs, so you would imagine that it's a safe bet for quality and goodness.

However, there's one thing that these meatballs seem to be lacking: Meat. Mama Lucia's Beef Meatballs, for example, contain approximately 10 grams of protein per serving, which is far lower than you might expect for its 85-gram serving size. It appears that the brand plumps up its meatballs through fillers and bulking agents, including bread crumbs, textured soy flour, and an "isolated oat product." It also puts a huge amount of fat into its products.

Mama Lucia Beef Meatballs also contain sugar from a few different sources, including corn syrup solids. And to top it all off, their vitamin and mineral content is somewhat lacking. While the iron and potassium content is fairly good, with 8% and 6% of your daily value respectively, there isn't much of anything else.