Want advanced access to my weekly Chewsday Reviews?

Every Tuesday morning receive the latest Chewsday Review delivered directly to your inbox.

The Happy Snack Company Roasted Chickpeas | Chewsday Review

These are a popular snack, but are they a "wholesome" chickpea snack or are they just chips in disguise?

Ingredients

Positives

These contain no added sugar, so I am not surprised that sugar is well within guidelines.
For a salty product, I am impressed that the sodium content is only 225mg per 100g. This meets my target of less than 400mg sodium per 100g, and is much less than regular chips (approx. 500-600mg per 100g).
These are a high fibre snack! One serve provides 23% of a toddler’s fibre requirements and 18% of a school-aged child’s fibre requirements.
They’re available in convenient individual serves or in a larger (and slightly cheaper) bag to reduce plastic waste.

Negatives

Total fat content exceeds healthy guidelines at 11.6g per 100g, but this comes from the canola oil, which is naturally low in saturated fat so not a concern. Just to be clear, canola oil is a totally safe and nutritious oil choice. This might upset the wellness people, but you can ignore anyone who tells you that seed oils are toxic or inflammatory.
These chickpeas are crunchy and tend to ‘shatter’ in your mouth, so require mature biting and chewing skills. The packaging says care should be taken for children under 3 years, but I’d be more conservative here, and say these are a choking risk for younger toddlers and babies, and are only suitable for older toddlers and school-aged children with mature biting and chewing skills.
These will cost you $40 per kg! Which is a heck of a lot more than a tin of chickpeas or bag of dried chickpeas…

Marketing

“Nut Free. Gluten Free. 100% Wholesome.” This is great for kids with allergies, but the “100% Wholesome” comment is a bit cringe.
“Vegan.” This seems too obvious!
“Made in Australia.” This means it is packaged/processed in Australia, but doesn’t necessarily mean all of the ingredients are Australian. The packaging states that the chickpeas are grown in Australia, but it isn’t clear if the remaining ingredients are Australian or imported.
A 5 star health rating. Well-deserved!

Alternatives

These roasted chickpeas are a nutritious snack option. They’re much higher in fibre and lower in salt and fat than any chips I have reviewed!
These have slightly less salt, but require more advanced biting and chewing skills than the Happy Snack Company Roasted Fava Beans.
Roasting your own chickpeas in the oven with herbs and spices is a much cheaper option. Toddler Mealtimes and Family Mealtimes members can try my Roast Chickpea recipe.