From baby steps to giant leaps, this month’s roundup of super snacks pack a punch in nutrition, taste and convenience.
For little ‘uns
Little Dish has launched two new healthy snack ranges into the baby aisle, made with nutritious ingredients such as wholegrain oats, chickpeas, whole fruit and seeds, and designed to encourage little ones to appreciate the natural flavours of food.
Little Dish’s new Baby Rice Cakes are coated with less juice, meaning they taste less sweet and contain 30% less sugar when compared against the average sugar content (per 100 g) in all baby rice cakes found in UK supermarkets.
Available in two recipes, Apple & Mango and Blueberry & Beetroot, the rice cakes are nutritionist-approved, organic, gluten-free and contain no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives.
Suitable for babies from seven months at a RRP of £1.10 ($1.53)/40 g.
Little Dish’s new Fruity Bites are made with whole fruit, wholegrain oats, quinoa and seeds and no added sugar.
Available in two recipes: Original and Carrot Cake, the fruit snacks are also nutritionist approved and provide a good source of fiber.
Suitable from 1 year plus at a RRP of £2.75 ($3.82)/150 g (6 x 25 g).
Along with the new launches, Little Dish has unveiled a fresh new look across all ambient packaging to bring even greater consistency with the brand’s chilled portfolio.
Available in Tesco and Morrisons and on Ocado.
Power of peas
Snack it Forward has announced the official nationwide launch of Peatos under its flagship World Peas Brand.
Peatos is a crunchy puffed snack that combines the so-called “junk snack” style taste, texture and visual appearance with twice the amount of protein (4 g) and three times the fiber (3 g) of Cheetos.
The snack also boasts non-GMO ingredients with no artificial colors, flavors or MSG in four flavor variants, including Classic Cheese, Fiery Hot, Chili Cheese and Masala.
Peatos is currently available at Vons, Pavilions and Albertsons, and will soon be listed with Kroger, Safeway and Amazon for a SRP of $2.99 (3 oz) and $1.29 (1 oz).
Cheesy kick
Kellogg’s has expanded its Cheez-It Duoz range of cheese cracker snacks with two new varieties.
Cheez-It Duoz Caramel Popcorn & Cheddar Cracker mixes popcorn and cheese crackers to create a sweet and salty flavour, while Cheddar Jack Cracker & Sharp Cheddar Pretzel combines cheese pretzels and crackers for a real cheesy kick.
The two new varieties join existing flavours in the Cheez-It Duoz line, including Bacon & Cheddar and Jalapeno & Cheddar Jack Cheese.
The new flavors are available nationwide from US retailers.
Bring out the beast
Meat snack manufacturer Jack Link’s has announced the release of five new high-protein meat snacks.
Lorissa’s Kitchen Beef Sticks, Jack Link’s Cold Crafted, Jack Link’s Pork Rinds, Jack Link’s Multi-Packs and Jack Link’s Steak Strips are available around the US in retail outlets.
Lorrisa’s Kitchen Beef Sticks are 1 oz snacks made with 100% grass-fed beef, contain no added nitrates and are available in three flavours - Original, Smokey Sweet and Jalapeño – at a SRG of $1.99 per stick.
Jack Link’s Cold Crafted is a combination of smoked beef and Wisconsin cheese, available in multiple formats and flavours, including Smoked Meat Sticks (original, loaded with pepper jack, loaded with cheddar cheese); Beef and Cheese Bites; Smoked Meat Sticks and Cheese (cheddar and pepper jack). Suggested retail price starts at $3.49 per pack.
Jack Link’s Pork Rinds – found in the chip aisle – contain 1 g of carbs and 8 g of protein, in Applewood BBQ and Sweet & Hot variants at a SRP of $1.99 per pack.
Jack Link’s Multi-Packs include 10 individually wrapped meat sticks of various flavours including original beef sticks, pepperoni beef sticks and turkey sticks. Suggested retail price of $3.99 per pack.
Jack Link’s Steak Strips is a high-protein meat bar offering 8g of protein and 70 calories, and is available in original and teriyaki flavours at a SRP of under $2.
A zest for allergy free snacks
Allergy friendly Zego will be sampling its nutrition bars and new line of “Mix-Ins” at Expo West to be held in Anaheim, California, in March.
The company was founded by CEO and celiac sufferer Colleen Kavanagh, who spotted the “free from ” trend when her children’s elementary school banned peanuts and tree nuts from campus – today restricted in 92% of elementary schools in the US.
Kavanash also noted that very few of the allergy friendly companies made superfood-based snacks that met the dietary needs of celiac sufferers and those with conditions like diabetes, Crohn's and ADHD.
Zego – for ZEst on the GO – is certified as a B Corp, and supports projects that improve nutrition for low-income children through farmers’ markets and schools.
Recently, the company raised $500K in its seed round and is launching the nutrition bars that are 100% organic and free of the top 14 allergens and grains.
The bars are also available in the Western US in UNFI, Market Center, C&S and KeHe at a RSP of $7.99.
Gluten-free crispbread
Crispbread producer WASA has launched a gluten-free crispbread line.
WASA Gluten Free is made from potato and amaranth, an ancient grain that is naturally gluten-free.
The crispbreads are available in two varieties - Original and Sesame & Sea Salt – for a SRP of $3.99, which is below the average price of other crispbread manufacturers, said the company.
WASA Gluten Free crispbread is Non-GMO Project verified, contains no lactose, is vegetarian, baked without palm oil, and packaged in portion-controlled snack packs. WASA products are available in Sweden, Germany, Poland, The Netherlands, France and the US.
Be kind to your body
Kind Healthy Snacks has entered the protein bar category with the release of Kind Protein From Real Food bars.
The protein bars deliver 12 g of soy protein isolates and do not contain any genetically engineered ingredients, including sugar alcohols and artificial sweeteners.
Kind Protein is available online and at retailers around the US, with a suggested retail price of $1.99 per bar.
