Nutri Bar with "Chocolate"

The fad around town these days are "Nutri/Protein" Bars. Some brands have done an incredible job at making the product and then marketing the hell out of it. Most brands in this space hire a food technologist to create a recipe that ticks all or most of the boxes.

• High Protein
• Low Fat
• Gluten Free
• Vegan
• Less Sugar
• No Sugar
• Vit D, E rich

You get the idea...The next step is to find a food processor, aka. contract manufacturer, who would turn that recipe into a packaged product. Once the product & production is in place, all that is left is to market it.

There is no question that these bars are marketed as "nutritious" and "healthy". Some of them are, but some aren't. Let me elaborate. Brands that use "chocolate" added to their bars are usually using "Compound". Yes, compound. Which means the so called "chocolate" used in them contain hydrogenated vegetable fat. This fat is unhealthy and bad for you.

I have come across several brands that use compound in their "healthy" bars. It made me wonder why would they do so? I quickly realised why. One, pure chocolate will melts at 31C, hence transportation/storage at retail level will be an issue. Two, pure chocolate is expensive, driving the MRP higher. In a category like nutri bars, selling in a price sensitive market like India and a over crowded space with many competitors, every rupee off the MRP matters.

But this draws me to the last point. No one cares. The consumer/buyer wants something that is pocket friendly as long as the bar is labeled a nutri/healthy bar. The brands don't care either as long as a sale is made. Its sad and funny to see a product marketed as "healthy" being bought by consumers who are not reading the ingredients list, is made by companies who don't have their own manufacturing unit.