Kellogg’s Special K | Chewsday Review

Today I'm back by popular demand with another classic cereal. Let's see if Special K goes against the grain in the breakfast cereal aisle, and what is truly special about it.

Ingredients

Ingredients: Rice (42%), whole grain cereals (23%)(wheat, oat flour), wheat protein, sugar, minerals (calcium carbonate, iron, zinc oxide), oat fibre, salt, barley malt extract, vitamins (niacin, vitamin D, vitamin B6, riboflavin, folate).
Rice and wholegrain cereals make up 65% of this product.
Added vitamins and minerals, including B vitamins, vitamin D, calcium and iron.
Allergens: gluten, wheat.
May contain: peanut, tree nuts.

Positives

One serve of Special K provides 3.0mg of iron. This is a quarter of the daily iron requirements for school-aged kids, and on par with the iron content of Weet-Bix.
Sugar (13.9g per 100g) comes in just under our target of 15g per 100g. It’s worth noting that this cereal doesn’t contain fruit, so it’s all from added sugar. There are lots alternatives with a lower sugar content, like Low Sugar Vanilla Cheerios (4.1g per 100g) or Sultana Bran (9.5g added sugar per 100g).
At 330mg per 100g, sodium content also scrapes in below guidelines. This is on the saltier side for breakfast cereals, and more than some savoury snacks.
Although Special K technically meets our criteria for sugar and salt, they’re so close to cut offs that I’d consider these neutral points rather than real positives!

Negatives

Special K falls a little short in terms of fibre content, with 2.4g of fibre per serve compared to our target of 3.0g per serve. This is less than Weet-Bix (4g fibre per serve), Low Sugar Vanilla Cheerios (4.9g fibre per serve) or Sultana Bran (6.8g fibre per serve).
Like other flavoured cereals, this will set you back more than your basic options. At $18 per kg, Special K is similarly priced to Cheerios ($16.70 per kg) and more than double the price of oats or Weet-Bix.

Marketing

“Grain-based protein”. True. Due to the added wheat protein, Special K is higher in protein (19.3g per 100g) compared to other cereals like Just Right (7.9g protein per 100g). Most children get enough protein from their diet, so they don’t need high protein foods.
“Fibre supports digestive wellness”. Interesting that this is a marketing claim despite Special K being reasonably low in fibre.
“Vitamin D and calcium for healthy bones”. True. One serve of this cereal provides more than a quarter of daily calcium requirements and half of daily vitamin D requirements for a school-aged child.
“Iron and B vitamins for energy support”. True.

Alternatives

While I do love that Special K is iron fortified, the borderline sodium and sugar content and low fibre content wouldn’t make it my first choice as a regular brekky cereal. Low Sugar Vanilla Cheerios, Weet-Bix, oats and Sultana Bran are still be my top picks.
I do think Special K could make a great addition to a trail mix. The crunchy texture makes it appealing to lots of fussy eaters, with the added bonus of some iron.
Looking for more on choosing breakfast cereal? Our Baby, Toddler and Family Mealtimes memberships include a comprehensive product selection guide for breakfast cereals, as well as over 15 other categories.

The composition of food products changes regularly. The nutritional values of the products in this Chewsday Review were correct at the time of publishing.