The New York-based snack producer is launching its first-ever energy bar with a pledge for pay $100,000 to get Americans to correctly consume snacks designed to boost vitality before physical activity.
According to the self-proclaimed ‘unapologetic nutrition champion’, people are eating energy bars all wrong.
Given that these types of bars are higher in calories and carbohydrates, they are best suited to be eaten before activity. However, 75% of Americans are chomping down on them as they relax at home or sitting at their desk.
KIND wants to change that.
On 27 October, the snack producer will pay the first 1,000 individuals who commit to eating an energy bar – be it their own or competitor’s brand, such as Clif bars – to be followed by a workout.
Participants will be required to submit a receipt or photo of the energy bar they have on hand. By pledging to eat it only before physical activity, they will each receive $100 to be used toward fitness-related expenses through the end of year. No questions asked.
KIND also wants to reinvent the energy bar category, which it claims, is littered with products that lead with protein powders, oil blends, artificial sweeteners, and/or sugar as their first ingredient, rather than whole grains.
KIND Energy – available in Peanut Butter, Chocolate Chunk and Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter variants – delivers 100% whole grains, 10g of protein and only 16g of sugar per 60g bar, which is 35% less sugar than the current market leader energy bar (21g of sugar per 68g bar).
Makes ‘bees-iness’ sense
In August, the company announced its commitment to become the first snack producer to exclusively source its almonds from bee-friendly farmland across the globe by 2025.
Almonds are the lead ingredient in most of KIND’s 80+ products and the company’s number one ingredient by both volume and spend.
As a baseline, KIND is expecting its almond suppliers to reserve 3-5% of their farmland for dedicated pollinator habitat to support bees, butterflies and other pollinators. It has also asked them to eliminate any use of neonicotinoids and chlorpyrifos, two pesticides thought to be harmful to pollinators.
“We have been energised and inspired by the leadership demonstrated by some of our peers and partners to more actively protect pollinators. We are also incredibly proud that many of our almond suppliers have led the way, proving that incorporating more bee-friendly practices is not just good for pollinators, but also good for business,” said Daniel Lubetzky, KIND’s founder and executive chairman.
The producer’s philanthropic arm has also made a $150,000 investment in the Williams Lab at the University of California to help answer critical questions about bee health and track the efficacy of these farm-level improvements.
“As an agricultural community, we need to make real change to ensure long-term bee health. KIND’s commitment to bee-friendly practices in its supply chain is the sort of actionable approach that will move the dial toward more sustainable practices industry-wide,” said Neal Williams, professor of Entomology at the University of California.
“To pair this commitment with support from The KIND Foundation for research is forward-looking and shows an understanding of how to promote further practical innovation to benefit bees.”