Don’t Go Nuts relaunches snack bar line with USDA certification

Free from foods producer Don’t Go Nuts has gained organic certification for its snack bar line.

The organic certified granola bar line – relaunched at Natural Products Expo West held in Anaheim, California, last week – includes Gorilla Power (with chocolate chips); Whitewater Chomp (with white chocolate chips), and Blueberry Blast (with blueberries).

Blueberry Blast is the company’s first dairy-free snack bar.

The three bars meet US federal requirements for the Smart Snacks in Schools program aimed at making schools nut free.

Inspired by offspring

Jane Pinto, founder of Don’t Go Nuts, is acutely aware of the danger that some people have to certain ingredients, as the company was inspired by her daughter Lilly who has life-threatening nut allergies.

Field to fingers

To ensure its promise of 100% nut-free and gluten-free food safety, parent company Pinto Barn Inc. developed its proprietary Field to Fingers Process – to ensure that every step of the journey is free of peanuts and tree nuts:

• From start to finish, all ingredients are processed using only nut-free equipment, including confirmation of that practice from each supplier.

• All products are produced in the company’s dedicated food production facility near its headquarters in Salida, Colorado.

• Each step of the process has security features, for example, in the ingredient receiving room, dust is blown from packages and removed from the building before the ingredients enter other areas

“Nut-free consumers trust our foods to be safe,” he said.

“We have come to understand on a deep level the need for clarity. While it may be clear to us what foods threaten Lily, we continue to be amazed how little the world around us ‘gets it.’ We are realistic about how much of this is uncharted territory,” said Pinto, noting the oats for the bars are sourced from GH Harvest, a company owned by a Celiac family.

“As [two] family-founded companies created to keep kids like ours safe, we take the absolute highest level of care.”

Don't Go Nuts' granola bars are certified gluten-free, organic and kosher, are made with non-GMO ingredients and contain no artificial colors or flavors.

All three variants will be available in five piece multi-packs and 12 piece caddies from April in selected retailers in the US, Canada, Europe and Hong Kong as well as online and on Amazon.com.

Nut-free spreads

In addition to its snack bar range, the company produces a range of nut-free roasted soybean spreads that also are certified organic and fortified with vitamin B.

Available in Chocolate – which the company claims has twice the protein, four times the fiber and two-thirds less sugar than other chocolate spreads – Slightly Sweet, Sea Salted, Pure Unsalted and Simply Cinnamon.

The spreads are available in 16 oz BPA-free plastic jars at a RRP of $6.99 online.