Bush's Best Original Baked Beans: Labelgrade C+ (67/100)

The short answer

Bush’s Best Original Baked Beans delivers 6g of protein and 140 calories per 0.5 cup (USDA FDC 2243970). Per 100mL that’s 4.8g of protein; per fl oz, 1.4g. The Labelgrade is C+ (67 / 100): Very low saturated fat and notable sugar load.

Why this Labelgrade

Read that table top to bottom and the verdict writes itself: every grade tied to the bean is fine, and every grade tied to the sauce is a D. Protein, fiber, and saturated fat — the legume’s contribution — all land in respectable territory. Sugar and sodium — the sauce’s contribution — are what pull the score from a would-be B-range food down to a C+. This is the flip side of what makes beans great: the base is excellent, but it’s been candied.

A great base food, dragged down by its sauce

White beans are a genuinely good thing to eat. On their own they bring plant protein, fiber, iron, and almost no sugar or salt — the same profile that lets a bean-based chili score a B+ elsewhere on this site. Bush’s starts from that good base (6g of protein and 5g of fiber per ½ cup is real, legume-driven nutrition) and then does the thing that defines the baked-bean style: it pours on a sweet, salty sauce.

That sauce is where the grade goes. The recipe lists brown sugar and sugar near the top of the ingredients, and the result is 12g of sugar in a half-cup side — more than you’ll find in many actual desserts by the spoonful. Stack 550mg of sodium on top (a quarter of a day’s limit in one scoop) and the two worst dimensions on the card are both coming from the same place: the glaze, not the bean. It’s the cleanest illustration on this site of a simple rule — beans win; candied beans win less. Nothing is wrong with the legume. The sugar and salt poured over it are the entire reason this isn’t an A.

How to read it next to a canned chili

The most useful comparison for these beans is a bean-based chili, and the trap is the serving size. Bush’s lists its numbers per ½ cup — a side-dish scoop. A product like Amy’s Medium Organic Chili lists its numbers per can — a full meal. So when you see Amy’s showing 312mg of sodium and Bush’s showing 550mg, you’re not comparing like with like: the chili’s figure covers an entire hot meal, while Bush’s 550mg covers a small side. Per equivalent amount of food, the gap is even wider than the raw numbers suggest.

The honest framing is this: both start from beans, but one keeps the bean’s clean profile intact and the other sweetens and salts it heavily. If you’re eating beans for the protein-and-fiber payoff, a plain or lightly-seasoned bean dish gets you there without the 12g of sugar. Bush’s is a flavor choice — a sweet, comforting side — and it’s fine in that role, as long as you read it as the side it is and not as a health food the bean base might have let it be.

How it compares

Scope

This page covers Bush’s Best Original Baked Beans (398 mL), UPC 039400036111, as represented in USDA Branded Foods FDC 2243970. Bush’s Best sells multiple variants in this product line — other sizes, flavors, or fat levels may have different macros and Labelgrade scores. Manufacturers periodically reformulate; always cross-reference the actual package label, especially if you have allergies or dietary restrictions.

Ingredients (from the USDA Branded Foods entry)

WHITE BEANS, WATER, BROWN SUGAR, SUGAR, BACON, SALT, PREPARED MUSTARD (WATER, VINEGAR, MUSTARD SEED, SALT, TURMERIC, SPICES), MODIFIED CORN STARCH, ONION POWDER, CARAMEL COLOUR, SPICES, EXTRACTIVES OF PAPRIKA, GARLIC POWDER, NATURAL FLAVOUR.

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Scope: This page applies specifically to Original Baked Beans (398 mL) · UPC 039400036111. Other sizes, flavors, or formulations may differ.