Bloody Calories on Crisps

workout_ninja
workout_ninja Posts: 524 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Small rant here: I am really pissed off! I havent had a packet of crisps in 2 weeks and yesterday decided I fancied a wee something. I looked at my calories and firgured I had enough for dinner and the packet of crisps, now Im really bad for eating while I cycle, so I cycled home from work, munching on my crisps (i bought cheddars). Anyway, when I got home, I put them into my diary and I had to go find the packet to figure out which cheddars it was on the list - only to discover that the calories it says on the fron (131) is actually for a 25g portion, and the packet is a 50g bag! Now COME ON! thats just really frikkin annoying, so I ate double the calories I thought I was eating!?!?! I mean why cant the front little helpful information contain the calories for the whole bag? Who eats half a bag of crisps - how can you succesfully half a bag of crisps if you are out and about without scales? Incidentally, I went over my calories for the day which is not a huge deal as it will even out over the week, but how can people be expected to make smart choices, if the companies make it that little bit harder to tell what we are eating?!

Replies

  • _EndGame_
    _EndGame_ Posts: 770 Member
    I know what you mean, I like crisps as well, so I stick to Walkers baked ones.

    Also, Special K have brought out some low cal crisps. You should check them out!
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    rant away LOL, it helps to sound off at times and I totally agree with ya - who indeed eats half a pack of crisps!! more like we want ANOTHER pack once we start lol
    Yogurts P's me off, those Muller ones list it per 100g when the carton is 125g (from memory!) grrrrrr

    Gosh I always feel better when I have a rant! hope yours has helped you too lol
  • xampx
    xampx Posts: 323 Member
    This happens with a lot of portions. If you are only reading the guideline on the front, you need to check what a portion actually consists of.

    I always check the back because I like to keep an eye on protein, so its easier to see per bag vs per portion vs per 100g.

    But yeah, 131 cals won't hurt.
  • neandermagnon
    neandermagnon Posts: 7,436 Member
    Yeah the sneakiness and dodgy maths of portion sizes is extremely annoying. So I hear your rant!!



    on the up side though, eating a few more calories as a one off won't harm your long term progress. so be angry over the principle of it (i.e. dodgy labelling of portion sizes) but don't stress about it generally.
  • BeccaBollons
    BeccaBollons Posts: 652 Member
    It is VERY annoying! If you love mini cheddars (as I do!) The multipack bags are the 25g ones. Nearly all the seving sizes for crisps are the multipack size bags, not the bags you can pick up singly as part of deals in service stations etc. Same with chocolate bars and bags of minstrels I found to my cost!

    Also just to say, nice to hear someone say crisps instead of chips, whenever I think of chips I think of lovely salt and vinegar chunks of potato. Mmmmm. What do Americans call that sort of chip?
  • Rarity2013
    Rarity2013 Posts: 196 Member
    Yes, this is amazingly frustrating. If you consider 25g to be the "portion size" why have a 50g bag? That's not even the kind of bag you would buy to share.
  • workout_ninja
    workout_ninja Posts: 524 Member
    It is VERY annoying! If you love mini cheddars (as I do!) The multipack bags are the 25g ones. Nearly all the seving sizes for crisps are the multipack size bags, not the bags you can pick up singly as part of deals in service stations etc. Same with chocolate bars and bags of minstrels I found to my cost!

    Also just to say, nice to hear someone say crisps instead of chips, whenever I think of chips I think of lovely salt and vinegar chunks of potato. Mmmmm. What do Americans call that sort of chip?

    I think they call chips fries? At least thats what Ive read.

    I do feel better after my rant - I should probably write a strong worded letter to cheddars!! I am pissed on principle - not on the fact I went over my calories. Im working out like a ninja just now so it really doesnt bother me. I will be looking into this now - Im going to be that crazy woman in the shop, staring at the nutritional info on everything before I buy it!
  • pluckabee
    pluckabee Posts: 346 Member
    It's insane that so many snack foods are actually in 2 serving packets.

    Smarties for gods sake!! A tube of smarties is 2 servings!! Who splits that up? What parent is meant to give their child a tube of smarties, watch them like a hawk until they've eaten half then take it back and put them away from tomorrow?
  • Juleeroch
    Juleeroch Posts: 98 Member
    It's insane that so many snack foods are actually in 2 serving packets.

    Smarties for gods sake!! A tube of smarties is 2 servings!! Who splits that up? What parent is meant to give their child a tube of smarties, watch them like a hawk until they've eaten half then take it back and put them away from tomorrow?

    :bigsmile: :bigsmile: :sad: :sad: :flowerforyou: totally agree. Lots of manufacturers are tending to do this now and it makes me so cross - (especially as the writing on the back with the correct calorie count per packet is SO SMALL ) grrrrrr. :angry: :angry:
  • godsgrl33
    godsgrl33 Posts: 307 Member
    It is VERY annoying! If you love mini cheddars (as I do!) The multipack bags are the 25g ones. Nearly all the seving sizes for crisps are the multipack size bags, not the bags you can pick up singly as part of deals in service stations etc. Same with chocolate bars and bags of minstrels I found to my cost!

    Also just to say, nice to hear someone say crisps instead of chips, whenever I think of chips I think of lovely salt and vinegar chunks of potato. Mmmmm. What do Americans call that sort of chip?

    well, there's french fries, or technically, french fried potatoes (but everyone just says french fries) which are cut into long strips. And, then there's American fries, which is sliced potatoes and pan-fried usually. Potato chips are what you call crisps. Then you have hash browns, which are either shredded or cubed pieces of potato that are pan-fried. Hope this helps.
  • Patrick0321
    Patrick0321 Posts: 102 Member
    Also, Special K have brought out some low cal crisps. You should check them out!

    Surprisingly, not as bad as I thought they would be
  • Faery_Dust
    Faery_Dust Posts: 246 Member
    It is really annoying isn't it! You have to have read all the small detail to check everything!

    I have had the special K cracker crisps, only the sweet chilli ones but they are quite nice and you get a good sized portion for just under 100 cals I think.

    I like the Walkers french fries Worcester sauce ones, 97 cals I think.
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
    I know what you mean. It's irritating that they put stuff like




    ONLY 42 CALORIES













    (for 3 bites).

    ****ers.

    Email them with

    I THINK YOUR PRODUCT'S GREAT













    (not really).
  • LaserMum
    LaserMum Posts: 133
    Small rant here: I am really pissed off! I havent had a packet of crisps in 2 weeks and yesterday decided I fancied a wee something. I looked at my calories and firgured I had enough for dinner and the packet of crisps, now Im really bad for eating while I cycle, so I cycled home from work, munching on my crisps (i bought cheddars). Anyway, when I got home, I put them into my diary and I had to go find the packet to figure out which cheddars it was on the list - only to discover that the calories it says on the fron (131) is actually for a 25g portion, and the packet is a 50g bag! Now COME ON! thats just really frikkin annoying, so I ate double the calories I thought I was eating!?!?! I mean why cant the front little helpful information contain the calories for the whole bag? Who eats half a bag of crisps - how can you succesfully half a bag of crisps if you are out and about without scales? Incidentally, I went over my calories for the day which is not a huge deal as it will even out over the week, but how can people be expected to make smart choices, if the companies make it that little bit harder to tell what we are eating?!

    The company's not in business to encourage healthy eating. They're in business to get you to eat as much of their cr*p as possible. If putting a lower amount of calories on the front of the pack is going to sell more product because people are not anal enough to stand in the shop reading every little thing on the packet, that's what they'll do. You bought and consumed twice as much product as you would otherwise so their marketing ploy worked.

    I agree it is extremely annoying but any marketing person will tell you that it's all about conning the punter to buy more.
  • AnsiStar
    AnsiStar Posts: 165 Member
    This used to drive me insane, but you eventually learn to have a good check of the back of the packet to make sure they're not "cheating" you.
    If you like the bakey flavour of mini chedders you could try Nairn's oatbites? They're little flavoured oatcakes and I thought the cheesey ones were really satisfying at like 100 cals a bag and a healthier choice all round :)
  • AllyCatXandi
    AllyCatXandi Posts: 329 Member
    Yep, I've had that happen to me and it's rather annoying. Then there was the time the package said it contained 50g of dried fish fillet (Chinese snack, I find it delicious) but when turned out it was over 75g :grumble:

    This - and for the sake of saving money - is why I find it easier to portion things out myself. For instance, I bought a big block of chocolate and have been managing to have a little bit every day (by taking it to work as snack so I can't go back for seconds, haha).

    Though when it comes to crisps, there are a lot of new 'popped' ones out on the market that are notably lower in calories than traditional ones.
  • pluckabee
    pluckabee Posts: 346 Member
    Small rant here: I am really pissed off! I havent had a packet of crisps in 2 weeks and yesterday decided I fancied a wee something. I looked at my calories and firgured I had enough for dinner and the packet of crisps, now Im really bad for eating while I cycle, so I cycled home from work, munching on my crisps (i bought cheddars). Anyway, when I got home, I put them into my diary and I had to go find the packet to figure out which cheddars it was on the list - only to discover that the calories it says on the fron (131) is actually for a 25g portion, and the packet is a 50g bag! Now COME ON! thats just really frikkin annoying, so I ate double the calories I thought I was eating!?!?! I mean why cant the front little helpful information contain the calories for the whole bag? Who eats half a bag of crisps - how can you succesfully half a bag of crisps if you are out and about without scales? Incidentally, I went over my calories for the day which is not a huge deal as it will even out over the week, but how can people be expected to make smart choices, if the companies make it that little bit harder to tell what we are eating?!

    The company's not in business to encourage healthy eating. They're in business to get you to eat as much of their cr*p as possible. If putting a lower amount of calories on the front of the pack is going to sell more product because people are not anal enough to stand in the shop reading every little thing on the packet, that's what they'll do. You bought and consumed twice as much product as you would otherwise so their marketing ploy worked.

    I agree it is extremely annoying but any marketing person will tell you that it's all about conning the punter to buy more.

    I think it's more about saving money on packaging. It costs way more to package those 2 servings separately.

    Although multipacks ARE about getting you to buy more.
  • __Di__
    __Di__ Posts: 1,659 Member
    Small rant here: I am really pissed off! I havent had a packet of crisps in 2 weeks and yesterday decided I fancied a wee something. I looked at my calories and firgured I had enough for dinner and the packet of crisps, now Im really bad for eating while I cycle, so I cycled home from work, munching on my crisps (i bought cheddars). Anyway, when I got home, I put them into my diary and I had to go find the packet to figure out which cheddars it was on the list - only to discover that the calories it says on the fron (131) is actually for a 25g portion, and the packet is a 50g bag! Now COME ON! thats just really frikkin annoying, so I ate double the calories I thought I was eating!?!?! I mean why cant the front little helpful information contain the calories for the whole bag? Who eats half a bag of crisps - how can you succesfully half a bag of crisps if you are out and about without scales? Incidentally, I went over my calories for the day which is not a huge deal as it will even out over the week, but how can people be expected to make smart choices, if the companies make it that little bit harder to tell what we are eating?!

    I know exactly what you mean and I find it more than annoying to be honest.

    It is the same on some packaging of other foods too. For instance, it will give the calorie amount for 100g worth and yet the complete lot from that packaging might weigh something like 142g!!! I mean, who the hell will leave 42g on the side???

    I just wish manufacturers would give the calories for the WHOLE lot!!! :angry:
  • BeccaBollons
    BeccaBollons Posts: 652 Member
    It is VERY annoying! If you love mini cheddars (as I do!) The multipack bags are the 25g ones. Nearly all the seving sizes for crisps are the multipack size bags, not the bags you can pick up singly as part of deals in service stations etc. Same with chocolate bars and bags of minstrels I found to my cost!

    Also just to say, nice to hear someone say crisps instead of chips, whenever I think of chips I think of lovely salt and vinegar chunks of potato. Mmmmm. What do Americans call that sort of chip?

    well, there's french fries, or technically, french fried potatoes (but everyone just says french fries) which are cut into long strips. And, then there's American fries, which is sliced potatoes and pan-fried usually. Potato chips are what you call crisps. Then you have hash browns, which are either shredded or cubed pieces of potato that are pan-fried. Hope this helps.

    Thanks! In England we call french fries the really thin chips you get in mcdonalds or burger king. Actual chip shop chips are so satisfying, more potatoey than french fries!
  • Eviesmum
    Eviesmum Posts: 270 Member
    I know what you mean, I like crisps as well, so I stick to Walkers baked ones.

    Also, Special K have brought out some low cal crisps. You should check them out!

    The Chilli ones are lovely, they are 94 calories for 23g.
  • MizzEngelChen
    MizzEngelChen Posts: 71 Member
    Because sharing is caring. The companies just try to promote social interactions by giving you two serving sizes so you can share it with your beloved ones *smile*
  • elliej
    elliej Posts: 466 Member
    I so agree. Also for chocolate. Though they even seem to do it in premade salads... who eats half a frigging salad?
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
    I know what you mean, I like crisps as well, so I stick to Walkers baked ones.

    Also, Special K have brought out some low cal crisps. You should check them out!

    The Chilli ones are lovely, they are 94 calories for 23g.

    Yes, I love those Special K Cracker Crisps. The problem is that they say you get 94 calories for 23g but the packets don't come in a number divisible by 23! ARGH! I emailed them about this and their advice was to buy the single packets then. :huh:

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