Go Raw: Live Pumpkin Bar

GoRaw Live Pumpkin is definitely one of the healthiest packaged foods we’ve ever eaten. It’s not often that a brand puts its ingredients front and center on the package in large font – clearly, they have nothing to hide. Here’s what it contains: sprouted organic pumpkin seeds, sprouted organic flax seeds, organic date, organic agave nectar, Celtic sea salt. The bar is free of gluten, GMO, Trans-fats, and cholesterol. One of the really interesting aspects to its formulation is that the seeds are technically alive, due to the fact that they were dried at less than 105 degrees Fahrenheit. The bar delivers an incredible 8g of fiber and 14g of protein.  Some of the disclosures on the package, while forthright and honest, are a bit unnerving. The manufacture mentions mold, insects, and small rocks as some of the things that this bar is susceptible to due to the uncooked, unpreserved, unprocessed way in which it was prepared. We feel the folks at GoRaw could have been a little more generous with the date/agave mix, as the bar is a bit dry, but we recognize that date/agave can bump up sugar levels in the bar. Goraw clearly chose to land on the side of less is more.  Overall, this is a product that should have health nuts jumping up and down and, fortunately for GoRaw, it tastes pretty nice to boot.
Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Full Bar: Cinnamon Roll

Full Bar’s Cinnamon Roll bar is a 100% natural bar that markets itself as being “inspired by weigh loss surgery principles” and “developed by a leading weight loss surgeon.”  On our beverage industry site, BevNET.com, we’ve seen lots of marketers try to position themselves as being people with M.D.s, but it hasn’t worked so well (what’s so wrong with a food scientist anyway?).  That, combined with this bar’s massive size and light weight (1.59 ounces) made us very eager to give this product a try.  Opening the wrapper, we noticed that the bar was sticky and difficult to remove.  Scissors were required to get it out.  The bar uses puffed wheat (along with soy crisps and soy protein) and honey, agave, and brown rice syrup provide the sweetness and coating.  The flavors are further enhanced with natural flavors, salt, and cinnamon.  However, it seems a bit far from being a replacement for a cinnamon roll.  All in all, it’s a tasty bar that has a taste that’s reminiscent of a sweetened breakfast cereal, so we think that it’s pretty likeable.   Nutritionally, the bar has 150 calories, 2g of fat, 6g of protein, 5g of fiber, calcium, sodium, and iron.  Drinking it with water, the bar certainly makes you feel full – so in that sense it works.   As for the packaging, they’ve done a nice job of cleanly arranging the elements on the front of the wrapper.  However, showing an image of a cinnamon roll on a product that’s geared at people who are trying to lose weight seems a bit much.  We’re also not convinced that a weight loss surgeon’s ability to perform medical procedures bears relevance to their ability to formulate shelf stable food products.   Overall, we like the concept and like the flavor, but the visual execution could use some refinement.
Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Pure: Cherry Cashew Bar

This bar is made with ingredients that are USDA Organic, raw, vegan, and gluten free, which helps make it live up to its “for all people” tag line. There’s a pleasant base of date and almond flavor to the mix, which has been sweetened with agave and has a slight crunch from small chunks of walnuts throughout. The cherry flavor is subtle, adding a nice tart flavor to the otherwise earthy tasting bar. We’re definitely pleased to see that they didn’t make it too “fruity” tasting. Nutritionally, this 1.7 ounce bar packs a fair amount in, including 400mg of omega 3, 4g of organic fiber, 6g and protein, 200 calories, 9g of fat, and vitamins and minerals. Packaging has a relatively simple style of presentation to it, with a white wrapper that’s decorated with a yellow illustration of a female face. It’s an appealing design that has a definite vibe of health and nutrition to it. The rest of the wrapper has a lot of text on it, but in this case, it all logically fits together as opposed to creating clutter. Overall, an exceptional tasting bar that delivers the perfect balance of flavor and nutrition.

Rating: 5 of 5 Stars