Lately a wave of new snack products has been popping up on grocery shelves, all claiming to be healthier, organic, and all natural. But how do you cut through the hype and figure out what's actually nutritious and edible? We checked out the latest snacks to hit the shelves and asked 50 fourth- and fifth-graders to tell us what they thought. On a scale of 1 to 5, the kids rated the products on two essential criteria: "how good it tasted" and "how excited they would be to find it in their lunch box." Then we asked two nutritionists from Better School Food to give us the lowdown on the products. Find out what snacks made the grade.
Fruit Snacks
Clif Kid Twisted Fruit
These fruit ropes, which contain one whole serving of fruit and come in fun flavors like pineapple, sour apple, and tropical twist. Twisted Fruit, $16 for 18, Clif Kid.
What the kids said: "Mmm, it's good," said Ramon, 10. "I like it, but I think this snack is too hard." The Mixed Berry and Grape flavors trumped the Tropical Twist and Pineapple. For some, the natural fruit wasn't sweet enough. "It needs more sugar in it to me. Just like 9 grams of sugar—just a pinch more sugar and flavor," concluded Andrew, 10.
The verdict: Taste, 3; Excitement, 2
FruitaBu Organic Smooshed Fruit Twirls
This Fruit-by-the-Foot-style snack packs a punch of fruit flavor and a whole serving of fruit. Organic Smooshed Fruit Twirls, $12 for 18, Fruitabu.
What the kids said: The kids loved the soft, smooth texture of the twist. "This tastes good!" said Oscar, 10. "It tastes like a normal Fruit Roll-Up." But some of the tasters said the twists lacked sweetness and that the apple flavor overpowered the berry flavor in the Smooshed Strawberry. "It needs more flavor and it's too sour," Adriana, 10, said.
The verdict: Taste, 3; Excitement, 2
What the nutritionist said: "You're better off with the Clif than the FruitaBu," said Geri Brewster, a mother of two and Registered Dietitian. Brewster appreciated that both products contained real fruit and were organic, but frowned on FruitaBu's long list of ingredients and mixed components. "There's palm oil in there, which is added for viscosity and a smoother texture, but it adds fat calories," she says. The high number of ingredients also makes it more difficult for parents to avoid food allergens. "Either way," she adds, "You'll be better off giving your children actual fruit, which has fiber and is even better for things like teeth."
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