Posted on 17 January 202319 July 2023 by Alla Bohdan

How to read food labels

They say it takes a single moment of inspiration to create your New Year’s resolutions and a grand total of ten days to break them.

Good planning will help you stick to your promises to kick the sugar habit, stop drinking booze, eat less (or smarter) carbs, go organic, lose weight generally, or simply get fit. BUT you also need to be well informed; and knowing exactly how to read food labels is a huge part of that.

Even some nutritionists and dietitians can get confused by all the whizz-bang, weird and wonderful ingredients on labels these days and that’s before we even get to understanding how much sugar (yes even the ‘natural’ kind) is too much.

Here are our top tips and general things to look out for when it comes to reading food labels.

First, check the percentage (100g), not the serve
When you’re checking food labels you should always look at the per 100g column first ahead of the per serving column. This gives you the percentage ratio of the nutrient level in foods and allows you to compare “apples-to-apples” with other foods, as serving sizes can vary significantly. Consider most cereals for instance – the serving size is often 30g. If you measure that out, you’ll see it’s quite tiny, and may be much smaller that what you would naturally serve yourself as a portion size.

Check the sugar
When it comes to sugar, you’re ideally looking for products with around 5g or less per 100g, but so long as it has single digits (less than 10g), you’re doing OK. Make sure most of that sugar is coming from natural ingredients like nuts (yep, there’s a bit of sugar in nuts) or dried fruit, rather than added sugars like syrups or even just ‘natural’ (i.e., refined) sugar. Dried fruit is ok in moderation, but because all the water content has been removed, the naturally occurring sugars are concentrated which means you can easily get more sugar than you realise in a small serving size.

Check the carbs
When it comes to carbs it all depends on what your goals are. If you’re keen to shift some weight, eating low carb is important, so you’d want to aim for lower carbohydrate products, with between 0-20g of carbs per 100g. You would also want to make sure you’re eating less than 100g of carbs in total per day, so watch your serving sizes too. Lastly, make sure any grains you eat are unrefined, whole grains like wild rice, quinoa, amaranth, steel cut oats etc. which are all good examples of this. Pasta and bread do NOT fall into this category, unfortunately!

Check the fat
Healthy, natural fats in the diet will actually help keep you lean, boost your immune system and improve brain function, so I rarely even glance at the fat content of products that I know are healthy (raw nuts, avocado, organic yoghurt, grass-fed meats, fish). It’s usually carbs and unnatural fats (think deep fried foods, donuts, biscuits, chips, margarines and processed oils, sweets) that stack on the weight, NOT normal, healthy fats. So, the only thing you should really pay attention to is whether the product contains trans fats or altered fats. Saturated fats from natural products, like grass-fed meats, can actually be good for you.

Check the fibre
This is perhaps the only nutrient that’s worth checking out ‘per serve’ and any product with more than 3g fibre per serve is a winner. The amount of fibre can also offset the carbohydrate content of food as well, as fibre is not digested by the body. Foods high in carbohydrates but also high in fibre will slow down the rate at which the remaining sugars are metabolised and absorbed by the body, helping to slow down the absorption of the simple sugars you want to avoid. High fibre foods keep you fuller for longer, feed your healthy gut bacteria and support optimal colon health.

Check the salt / sodium
How much salt you need is individual. If you have hypertension you will want to closely monitor your salt intake, but for most people salt is ok in moderation, and you shouldn’t need to worry about it unless you’re eating loads of processed foods full of salt (i.e., going nuts on the salt). A better choice when it comes to salt is natural, unrefined Celtic Sea salt or Himalayan pink salt which are also loaded with a full spectrum of essential minerals.

Check the ingredients
Try and choose products with as few ingredients as possible and that are close to their natural state. An apple is an apple, but apple juice is not the same, as the important natural fibre component is removed, and the sugars content concentrated instead. And an ‘apple-caramel-splice-treat’ sounds like something created in a factory and is bound to have a lot of undesirable added extras that you don’t want or need! Basically, if your granny doesn’t recognise an ingredient, it’s gotta go!

Don’t be fooled by ‘low fat’ products
Full fat, less tampered with products usually contain less sugar and more nutrients. They also help with satiety – keeping you fuller, for longer. Low-fat foods tend to have the fat component replaced by carbohydrates so instead of naturally occurring fats, you usually have elevated levels of refined sugars or worse. Kick them to the curb!

If in doubt?
If in doubt, stick to foods that don’t require a label at all – veggies, fruit, grass-fed meats, fish, eggs, nuts, beans and other ‘one ingredient’ products always win! Choose organic foods when you can to avoid things like pesticides and the wax on apples (which can contain gluten).

By Libby Babet, Chief Co-founder.

We think you may like these

22 reviews for Chief Collagen Protein Bar

Rated 5 out of 5

Jacinta – 23 August 2020

Melt in your mouth goodness

Seriously tasty protein bars! Hit the spot as a great snack or even dessert. Just the right size to not feel sick or over powered. I had to order multiples of the mixed sample box cause I couldn’t decide which one was my fave 🙂
Rated 5 out of 5

Mary-Ann Voutos – 1 September 2020

Bars are the best ever!

Chief collagen bars are the best tasting bar on the market. Clean, top quality natural ingredients, low in sugar and keto friendly. Always feel great after eating one. All the flavours are equally delicious, although the Lemom is an absolute favourite.Highly recommend you try one. Hard to stop at 1!
Rated 5 out of 5

Nicholas Pandelakis – 6 December 2020

Best Protein Bars

Almost all protein fall short of what they actually say. Chief collagen protein bars deliver exactlyon nutritional value and taste.
Rated 4 out of 5

Nguhi Wamwangi – 19 September 2021

Collagen Bar Sampler

Loved the bars, very dense and filling which was good for me. Loved the Lemon tart most, thanks !
Rated 4 out of 5

Daria – 28 September 2021

Better than expected

Delicious and my new go to when I need a sweet hit. Keeps the hungers at bay and does the job!!
Rated 5 out of 5

Emily – 24 October 2021

Keto kickstart

I started keto in a week I was time poor and stressed but thank goodness I had a mixed box of these guys which saw me through the busy and kick started my weight loss program.
Rated 4 out of 5

Kylie Dalla Costa – 3 November 2021

Great flavors and texture!

Not overly sweet but a really nice treat!
Rated 5 out of 5

Sally Collins – 10 November 2021

Great product.

Great ingredients list. Beautiful packaging. Delicious. The only bars I spend my money on.
Rated 5 out of 5

Linda Morrison – 11 November 2021

Truly surprised!

I’ve bought many many different health, protein, diet bars whatever you want to call them over too many years to admit. I was sceptical of course but these bars are very different & not like a protein bar or a cereal bar but I really love them. They are my go to once sometimes twice a day now instead of a biscuit. Love them & I definitely need to order more now!
Rated 5 out of 5

Brett Meldrum – 5 December 2021

Get on them!!

Love the collagen bars, lemon tart is my favourite, I’ve been suffering from tendinitis in my elbows for years and these bars really help!! Highly recommended
Rated 5 out of 5

Karen – 30 January 2022

Great!

I really like the flavour of all the various flavours. I love that they are Keto, nutricious and have no hidden nasties,very good!
Rated 5 out of 5

Rachel – 31 January 2022

Great tasting bars

Great tasting, almost like eating cookies. Clean ingredients mean that the kids can eat them too!!!
Rated 5 out of 5

Barbara Elkins – 24 March 2022

Delicious & filling

I love these for a meal on the run. I eat one slowly savouring every bite and it keeps me going for hours. I regularly do fasting and these fit nicely into my regime. My least favourite is the peanut flavour but its still quite nice my favourite is the lemon one & I wouldn’t mind a cheesy one.
Rated 5 out of 5

Rachel Hayes – 28 March 2022

Mixed box review

I thoroughly enjoy the collagen bars. Love knowing that they’re made with so few ingredients. Taste great, perfect snack (or breaky on the run)
Rated 5 out of 5

Juan Carlos Ascencio-Lane – 28 March 2022

Mixed Box Bar

This has been an amazing addition to my staples in the cupboard. I was pleasantly surprised to find they were nice to eat and with great flavour. They definitely keep hunger away
Rated 5 out of 5

Tania P. – 30 March 2022

Yum

These are my favourite protein bars. They’re like a shortbread biscuit. Love all the flavours.
Rated 5 out of 5

Amelia Lee – 5 April 2022

Delicious and filling

I’ve been avoiding grains and refined sugars, which makes it hard to find a muesli bar! I love these collagen bars – they’re tasty, filling and I like the crumbly texture. I keep getting the mixed box because I can’t choose a favorite flavor.
Rated 5 out of 5

Steven – 8 April 2022

Great tasting

Very good, nice to eat almost like your cheating !!
Rated 5 out of 5

karen Anthony – 16 April 2022

Great healthy snack !

I really love the collagen bars , they are my mid morning snack with my coffee. Great thing is I know they are healthy as well as delicious.
Rated 5 out of 5

Tania Tully – 22 May 2022

Worth Trying

I thought I’d give some other flavors a try. Peanut butter is still my favorite but I was pleasantly surprised by lemon tart. I would not have ordered that on its own normally, but now that I’ve tasted it, I will for certain. Yummy!
Rated 5 out of 5

Stephen Daw – 22 July 2022

Bushwalking snack

The starter pack was great for walking and hikes so had to purchase more. Nice flavors in the mixed box.
Rated 5 out of 5

Susanne Vijsma – 16 August 2022

Perfect snack

Have tasted all of the Collagen bars and can’t decide which one is best, because they’re all delicious. The flavours are not particularly strong, but I think that’s because they’re not very sweet, which is good. Texture is soft & slightly crumbly, not chewy, but doesn’t fall apart. Very satisfying, sometimes half a bar is enough.
Rated 5 out of 5

Carol (verified owner) – 29 March 2023

these bars are a great snack, couldnt decide what flavour as they are all yummy. Hard to only have 1 a day
Rated 5 out of 5

HNR (verified owner) – 24 May 2023

Favourite with the whole family, these bars are the best!