Messy Monkeys Whole Grain Bites Cheese | Chewsday Review

Did you notice - or better yet did your child notice - that Messy Monkeys Wholegrain Bites have a “yummy new recipe”? Let’s see how this new formulation stacks up against other savoury snacks.

Ingredients

Whole grain sorghum (35%), maize, rice, sunflower oil, cheese flavoured seasoning (whey powder (milk), maltodextrin, salt, natural flavour (contains milk), sugar, buttermilk powder (milk), yeast extract, cheese powder (milk), garlic powder, vegetable oil, colour (curcumin), chickpea fibre, quinoa (1%), emulsifier (sunflower lecithin), anticaking agent (tricalcium phosphate), rosemary extract.
These are mostly sorghum (a gluten-free grain), maize (corn), rice and sunflower oil. It’s likely there is just as much corn and rice in these as there is sorghum.
Allergens: milk.

Positives

These are a reasonable source of fibre, unlike most snack foods. Each packet (20g) contains 2g of fibre. This is equivalent to 14% of a toddler’s fibre target and 11% of a young child’s fibre target.
These only have a tiny amount of added sugar, so are well within guidelines with less than a teaspoon of sugar per 100g.
Saturated fat is only 2.3g per 100g, which ticks the box. Incidentally, this is the same as Arnott’s Bluey Cheese Crackers.
These are free from most common allergens (except milk), which is helpful for kids with food allergies. Two of the other flavours (chicken and burger) don’t have milk as an ingredient.

Negatives

The sodium content is just above recommendations (less than 400mg) at 435mg per 100g. This is similar to Arnott’s Bluey Cheese Crackers (447mg per 100g), but less than most flavoured rice crackers and potato chips (approx. 500mg per 100g).
Total fat is above guidelines, at 16.9g per 100g, but I’m not that concerned because saturated fat is within guidelines. This is still less than most regular potato chips (approx. 30g per 100g) and Arnott’s Bluey Cheese Crackers (21.6g of fat per 100g).
These are incredibly expensive for what they are. A 6-pack costs $6, which means each packet is $1. This works out to $50 per kilo. Arnott’s Bluey Cheese Crackers are $4.50 for an 8-pack, so only 56 cents each and about $27 per kilo.

Marketing

“36% Whole Grain”. Technically true, but I have to laugh that they’ve listed quinoa as a source of whole grain (in addition to sorghum) and these only contain 1% quinoa?!
“No artificial colours, flavours or preservatives”. True, but so are most snacks nowadays.
“No palm oil. No added MSG. No nasties”. Great on the first two points, but long-time readers know my frustration with “nasties”… I’m still waiting for someone to explain to me what these “nasties” are, and provide the evidence for why they are so nasty.
“Four star health star rating”. I suppose that extra star is missing thanks to the sodium and total fat content.

Alternatives

As a pre-packaged snack, these contain a reasonable amount of fibre per packet and are a lunchbox friendly option. Unfortunately you might need to take out a second mortgage if your kids eat these regularly.
If your child doesn’t need wheat and gluten-free snack options, you may as well buy Arnott’s Bluey Cheese Crackers which are nutritionally almost identical and nearly half the cost.
Plain rice crackers, corn thins and rice cakes are much cheaper and nutritionally similar options, and pair well with dips, nut butters and other spreads to create a more substantial snack.

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