Snack Bars

• Mrs May’s Naturals Crunches
• No-No bars
• Naked Goodness & 100% Natural Cashew & Coconut
• Nice & Natural Apricot Natural Nut Bar
• Australian Wallaby Cashew & Sesame
• Naked Goodness & 100% Natural Macadamia & Apricot
• Megaburn Body Boost Bar
• Freedom Foods Omega
• Dr Mercola’s Cocoa Cassava Bar
• Truelife bars
• Layleys Apricot & Cashew
• Annie’s rollups & wriggles
• Sunshine Organic Treats Berry bars

• One Square Meal
• Freedom Foods Muesli
• Orgran Fruit Bar
• Cookie Time Bumper Bar
• Tasti Snak Logs
• Mother Earth Soft & Chewy
• Uncle Toby Chewy Muesli
• Powerbar Pria
• Zone Perfect
• Body For Life
• Vogels Scroggin Clusters
• Healtheries Simple

Mrs May’s Almond Crunch (56g)
Mrs May’s Cran-Blueberry Crunch (56g)

Cost and availability: Approx $2.60 from health food shops. I haven’t found them in any supermarkets so far. These are bags of bite sized nut crunches, and are delicious. These are just two of he flavours available.

Pros:

• Made from real food.
• Good macronutrient ratio

Cons:

• Some flavours have “natural flavours” added, which are not necessarily good.
• They’re from Australia, so are a bit more expensive than NZ bars.

Summary: The NEW pick of the bunch! They say one serve is half a bag, but you could easily eat the whole bag yourself.

No-No Sesahoneyme (75g)
No-No Cashoneyew (75g)

Cost and availability: Approx $1.90 from health food shops. I haven’t found them in any supermarkets so far. There are other bars in the range, including a Carob flavoured bar. They are higher in sugar and carbs and not all of them are gluten free. But check them out and see if they meet your requirements.

Pros:

• NZ made, from real food.
• Reasonably good macronutrient ratio

Cons:

• Some people are sensitive to peanuts

Summary: The pick of the bunch! Half a bar is probably adequate, but even a whole one shouldn’t blow your blood sugar out of the water. Aug 2007 – still good, but lost the top slot!

Naked Goodness Cashew & Coconut Bites (25g)
& 100% Natural Cashew & Coconut (50g)

Cost and availability: Bites are around $3.90 for a box of 8 in the supermarket (so under 50c each). I haven’t found the full sized bars here. Also available in Macadamia and Apricot, which is ranked a bit lower (see below).

Pros:

• Comes in two sizes – for many people the smaller size will be enough
• Mostly natural ingredients
• Good macronutrient ratio

Cons:

• Added sugar, and added glucose syrup. But at least it’s from corn, so still gluten free. (Note that glucose syrup, even though derived from corn, is much safer then high fructose corn syrup. It’s the fructose that’s most dangerous.)
• Added sunflower oil

Summary: Probably the best bar you’d be able to find in a supermarket, or 24/7 store.

Nice & Natural Apricot Natural Nut Bar (35g)

Cost & Availability: Approx $3.96 for a box of 6 in supermarkets, so about 66c each. Comes in other GF flavours – plain, Chocolate and Yoghurt, which are a little higher in carbs and sugar, so only get one tick.

Pros:

• Good ratio with comparatively low sugar content

Cons:

• Some people are sensitive to peanuts
• Added glucose syrup. But at least it’s from corn, so still gluten free.

Summary: A nice tasting, economical bar.

Australian Wallaby Cashew & Sesame bar (40g)

Cost & Availability: Available in health food shops.

Pros:

• Natural ingredients
• Good macro nutrient balance

Cons:

• It’s got soy beans in it. Maybe they have been fermented, but probably not.

Summary:

I personally wouldn’t eat it because of the soy beans, but for others the good things about it may outweigh that.

Naked Goodness Macadamia & Apricot Bites (27g)
& 100% Natural Macadamia & Apricot Bars (55g)

Cost & Availability: Bites are around $3.90 for a box of 8 in the supermarket (so under 50c each). I haven’t found the full sized bars here. Also available in Cashew and Apricot, which is ranked a bit higher (see above).

Pros:

• Comes in two sizes – for many people the smaller size will be enough
• Mostly natural ingredients

Cons:

• Added sugar, and added glucose syrup. But at least it’s from corn, so still gluten free. (Note that glucose syrup, even though derived from corn, is much safer then high fructose corn syrup. It’s the fructose that’s most dangerous.)
• Added sunflower oil

Summary: One of the best bars you’d be able to find in a supermarket, or 24/7 store.

MegaBurn Body Boost Bar (60g)

Cost & Availability: $45 for a box of 10 available online

Pros:

• Very good ingredients
• Gluten, dairy and soy free

Cons:

• It’s let down by the carb and sugar content which is high

Summary: The ingredients are very good, if you’re OK on a high carb bar. But if you need a higher ratio of fat and protein, you’d need to have something else with it.

Note that the other bars in this range all have soy protein in, which gives them a much lower score.

Freedom Foods Omega Bar (40g)

Cost & Availability: Approx $9.93 for a box of 6, in the health food section of the supermarket.

Pros:

• Mostly good ingredients
• Reasonable macronutrient ratio

Cons:

• The added sweetener is fructose which is one of the most dangerous
• Total carb and sugar content is quite high – more than I’d recommend for a snack
• Unless they’re stored in the fridge, the flaxseed oil is likely to go rancid

Summary: This is a bar I’d maybe eat half of, but a whole bar is a big sugar hit.

Dr Mercola’s Cocoa Cassava Bar (45g)

Cost & Availability: These have to be ordered by the boxful (12) from Dr Mercola’s website, and including shipping come to about $NZ 8 a bar. So a bit expensive for most people! But I’ve reviewed them as I know a lot of my readers also read Dr Mercola, and I thought you might like to know how his bars stack up.

Pros:

• Mostly fairly good ingredients
• OK macronutrient ratio

Cons:

• Labelled as low carb, but they clearly are not

Summary: If I lived in the US, I’d maybe keep a box in the cupboard for when I’m out and about. But although they were quite nice tasting, overall I didn’t think they were that great, and definitely not worth what it costs to get them here.

Truelife Fig Bar (75g)
& Truelife Sunny Bar (75g)

Cost & Availability: Around $1.80 in health food shops. Or $2.80 for the all-organic version for these two bars. There are many other flavours, but most of them are even higher in sugar, and most are not gluten free.

Pros:

• NZ made, from real food.

Cons:

• High in carbs and sugar

Summary: If you have quarter of one as dessert, it’s a pretty healthy one. But as a meal replacement, especially if have the whole thing, you’re likely to feel a bit sick in the short term and it won’t be good for your blood sugar.

Layleys Apricot & Cashew Bar (50g)

Cost & Availability: Used to be available in health food shops, but can’t find in my area at present. Ask in your local shop.

Pros:

• Good natural ingredients

Cons:

• High in carbs and sugars

Summary: As with the Truelife bars, if you have quarter of one as dessert, it’s a pretty healthy one. But as a meal replacement, especially if have the whole thing, you’re likely to feel a bit sick in the short term and it won’t be good for your blood sugar.

Annies All Fruit Rollups, Wriggles and bars

Cost & Availability: Widely available in supermarkets and health food shops.

Pros:

• NZ made, from real food.
• Most bars are pure fruit with nothing added.

Cons:

• High in carbs and sugar

Summary: Suitable to replace a piece of fresh fruit, as part of a balanced meal or snack. But as with fresh fruit, I don’t recommend eating one on it’s own. And remember that dried fruit is more concentrated than fresh, so eat a smaller portion. Fibre Fruits are not recommended as they include soy.

Note: These comments only apply to Annies brand, which are pure. Other brands (eg. Uncle Toby’s) have other ingredients such as wheat derivatives and vegetable oils and should be totally avoided.

Sunshine Organic Treats Berry Bar (75g)

Cost & Availability: Available in health food shops at around $4.95 for a box with 2 bars. There are other gluten free treats in the range, including the Smart One bar which is similar to this one, and other cakes and biscuits.

Pros:

• NZ made, from real food.

Cons:

• High in carbs and sugar

Summary: As with the Truelife bars, if you have quarter of one as dessert, it’s a pretty healthy one. But as a meal replacement, especially if have the whole thing, you’re likely to feel a bit sick in the short term and it won’t be good for your blood sugar.

One Square Meal (1 bar, 1/2 serve, 87g)

Cost & Availability: Approx $3.70 for a pack of 2 in the supermarket, approx $4 in dairy or service station. (Note that the two bars are considered to be the equivalent of a meal. For a snack, one would be ample, and that’s what is in the table.)

Pros:

• Mostly fairly natural ingredients
• OK fats
• Not high in sweeteners

Cons:

• Includes soy protein
• Isn’t gluten free
• Low in protein, high in carbs

Summary: In truth, this isn’t the worst of the bars by a long shot. Most are much more unhealthy. But this one is worth mentioning as it’s promoted as being so healthy that you could use two bars to replace a meal, and you’d be covering all your nutritional bases. But look at the sugar content. This means two bars have 30g, which means they’re saying 90g of sugar a day is OK. Not in my book it isn’t!

Freedom Foods Muesli Breakfast Bar (35g)

Cost & Availability: Approx $7.30 for a box of 6, in the health food section of the supermarket.

Pros:

• Gluten free
• Fairly good ingredients

Cons:

• Extremely high carb

Summary: Coming in at nearly 60g of carbs, I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone. For people with weight or health problems, 70-80g of carbs might be their upper limit for the entire day!

Orgran Fruit Bar (50g)

Cost & Availability: Approx $2.80 in health food shops.

Pros:

• Gluten free

Cons:

• High in carbs and sugar
• Added fructose
• Dangerously low in fat
• The small amount of fat present is canola oil

Summary: They’ve fallen into the trap of thinking low fat is healthy, and the lower the better. We know better – fat keeps your blood sugar stable, and helps build your cells. It probably tastes nice if you want to eat it as cake. But it’s not a nourishing snack in any way.

Cookie Time Bumper Bar (80g)

Cost & Availability: About $3.60 for a box of 3 in the supermarket. Also available singly in service stations. Come in 3 flavours.

Pros:

• High in butter, which is good, and unusual in baked snacks these days
• Reasonably natural ingredients

Cons:

• They don’t say what the vegetable oil is, so it could be good (coconut or palm) or bad (canola)

Summary: If you’re on holiday and pull into a service station, this or a One Square Meal might look like the healthiest choices available. Admittedly, they are tasty. But if you can find a bag of nuts and brush the excess salt off, that would be better.

Tasti Snak Logs (40g)

Cost & Availability: Around $3.50 for a box of 6 in the supermarket.

Pros:

• Ratio isn’t as bad as many others

Cons:

• Contains margarine
• Peanuts are a common allergen
• Also contains casein and gluten
• Apple juice is commonly perceived as healthy, but is high in fructose
• Includes colour which most of the others don’t

Summary: Nothing to recommend it. Avoid.

Mother Earth Soft and Chewy Berry Choc (32.5g)

Cost & Availability: Around $4.30 for 8 in the supermarket.

Pros:

• Reasonably natural ingredients

Cons:

• Very low in protein
• Doesn’t specify the vegetable oil
• Lots of different types of added sugars

Summary: When a bar has only one very weak “pro”,and many “cons”, what else can I say except don’t eat it?

Uncle Toby Chewy bars (Berry)

Cost & Availability: Around $3.20 for 8 in the supermarket.

Pros:

• None

Cons:

• Hydrogenated vegetable oil
• Contains casein and gluten
• Lots of added sugars

Summary: It’s got all the bad stuff. Avoid.

Powerbar Pria (28g)

Cost & Availability: Approx $1.99 in the health food section of the supermarket.

Pros:

• No redeeming features

Cons:

• Contains soy
• Low fat
• High in refined carbs

Summary: This is made pretty much entirely from soy and refined carbs. Adding some vitamins and minerals doesn’t make it any better. Eat some real food instead, and avoid these things unless very desperate.

Zone Perfect Orange Cranberry Crunch (50g)

Cost & Availability: Approx $3.99 in the supermarket. Comes in 13 different flavours.

Pros:

• It’s a Zone bar, so OK macronutrients ratio
• Gluten free

Cons:

• Contains soy and canola oil
• Contains fructose, one of the most dangerous sugars
• High in refined carbs

Summary: They’re probably no worse than many others, but they’re not real food. Don’t eat them unless you’re desperate for fuel and the only alternative is a Body For Life bar, and even then starvation is always an option.

Body for Life bars

Cost & Availability: About $3.29 in supermarkets. Lots of flavours available.

Pros:

• Gluten free
• Reasonable macronutrient balance, aimed at Zone ratios

Cons:

• Soy protein
• Lots of fructose
• Artificial sweetener (sucralose)
• Artificial flavourings

Summary: Body For Life is quite a popular regime still, and people are out there eating these bars, thinking they’re good for you. They’re not, they’re appalling.

Healtheries Simple Apricot & Yoghurt bar

Cost & Availability: About $2.79. A fairly new bar, so not widely available yet. But expect them to see with the other Simple products soon. Also available in Berry & Yoghurt and Chocolate flavour. The Berry and Yoghurt gets even less stars as it also has added sucralose (total score 4 x’s!).

Pros:

• Gluten free
• Better macronutrient ratio than some others

Cons:

• Contains soy protein
• Contains fructose
• Contains unspecified vegetable fats

Summary: If you’re gluten intolerant, sometimes you find yourself in a situation where your choices are to eat gluten or gnaw your arm off. In that situation, these might be better than losing an arm….Otherwise avoid.

Vogels Scroggin Clusters (40g)

Cost & Availability: Around $4.99 for 6 in the supermarket.

Pros:

• Nothing to speak of

Cons:

• High allergy potential
• Margarine
• Colour
• Sugars

Summary: The original Vogels was the first whole grain bread in NZ, and it’s still the best of the gluten breads. So it’s very disappointing to see that these clusters are not in the same league – and in fact are the very opposite. There are other bars available that are this bad, or maybe a tad worse, like Milk & Cereal bars, or Milo bars, but at least those ones you can tell at a glance are not going to be nutritious.