Simply picking a blueberry is technically “food processing,” says nutritionist and dietitian, Malina Linkas Malkani. “Food processing has been happening for thousands of years, and virtually everything we eat has undergone some form of processing, so it’s impossible to say that processed foods don’t belong in a healthy diet,” she says. “That said, the level of food processing falls on a spectrum from minimally to heavily processed.” Processing is an issue when it alters a food so much that the nutritional content, quality and value of the food changes, Malkani says. Minimally processed foods have recognisable ingredients, while the heavily processed variety typically include hard-to-pronounce names. Malkani suggests people weigh the pros and cons of any food while taking into account convenience, safety and nutrition.