The next time you’re packing lunch for your child or looking for a healthy afternoon snack, consider this: Only three types of fruit snacks (dried fruit, pureed fruit, and canned fruit with juice) meet the latest snack recommendations. high nutritional value. established by federal dietary guidelines, according to research by food scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Of all the commercially available fruit snacks, defined by the USDA as “products made with fruits and fruit juices, which may or may not contain added sugar, artificial colors and flavors, and preservatives,” the UMass Amherst team found that dried fruits They have the best overall nutritional profile: the highest nutrient density and fiber content, and the lowest added sugar.
In contrast, fruit-flavored snacks, such as gummies, have the lowest nutrient density and fiber content and the highest amount of added sugar. Other low nutrient-dense fruit snack options include canned fruits packed in something other than juice and flavored dried fruits, both of which contain higher amounts of added sugar. The food comparison study, led by food scientists Amanda Kinchla, extension professor, and Alissa Nolden, assistant professor, was recently published in the journal Nutrients.
While eating a piece of fresh fruit is undoubtedly the healthiest option, 80% of the American population does not consume the daily number of servings of fruit (five) recommended by federal dietary guidelines. Therefore, one strategy for consumers to increase fruit in their diet is to choose nutrient-dense fruit snacks.
“These are not fresh fruit, but snacks that people usually consume,” says Kinchla.
The researchers decided to investigate which fruit snacks are the most nutritious, marking the first time this type of study has been conducted. They collected and analyzed the nutritional content of 1,497 fruit snacks, using Mintel’s global new products database, accessed through UMass Libraries. For their study, the team defined fruit snacks as “non-frozen food products and beverages made primarily with fruit ingredients.”
They used the Nutrient Rich Foods (NRF) Index, which calculates an overall nutritional quality score based on the nutrient profile of foods, to compare the healthiness of fruit snacks. This model considers the nutrients that are desirable (protein, dietary fiber, potassium, vitamin D, calcium, iron) as well as those that are recommended to be limited in the diet (saturated fat, cholesterol, added sugar and sodium). to evaluate the overall nutrient quality of each fruit snack.
“We were trying to connect the dots between all the nutrients, which is the advantage of NRF: being able to look at multiple nutrients at the same time,” Nolden says.
The team classified fruit snacks into nine different categories: dried fruits, fruit bars, flavored nuts, canned fruits, fruit-flavored snacks, fruit puree, fruit chips, formed fruits, and canned fruits with juice. .
Additionally, they not only looked at nutritional value by serving size, but also calculated fiber and added sugar content based on the FDA’s Reference Amounts Usually Consumed (RACC) per eating occasion to balance out serving variability across foods. different categories of fruit snacks.
Their goal was to determine the health of fruit snacks and see where improvements could be made.
“With the knowledge of consumers and the understanding of perceptions and sensory analysis from Alissa, we can try to understand consumer acceptance and limitations and then design foods that better suit that, so that we can then reinforce the health and wellness platforms,” says Kinchla.
The document concludes: “A reformulation of fruit snacks is necessary… Shaped fruits and fruit-based bars could have less added sugar to become a more nutritious fruit snack option. Canned fruit [with added sugar] and fruit-flavored snacks need further reformulation, as they have low nutrient density and fiber content and high added sugar content. Improving the nutritional quality of fruit snacks can facilitate smart snack choices.
“The future direction for the fruit snack category should consider decreasing added sugar content, increasing fiber content and improving the sensory profile to improve overall nutrient density.”