Pom-Bear Cheese Snacks, 6 x 13g

Pom-Bear are teddy shaped potato snacks from KP Snacks, and this is the Cheese flavour, which the pack marks as new. The full product name on the pack is cheese flavour teddy shaped potato snack. This is the multipack of six 13g bags, 78g in all, and the pack gives figures for each bag.

The ingredients

According to the published pack listing, the bears are made from dried potato, sunflower oil, potato starch, maize starch, a cheese flavour (maltodextrin, rice flour, dried yeast extract, salt, potassium chloride, natural flavouring, dried onion and dried garlic), maize dextrin, sugar, potato protein, yeast extract, an emulsifier (mono and diglycerides of fatty acids), potassium chloride and paprika powder.

Cheese without cheese

There is no cheese and no milk on the list. The cheesy taste comes from yeast extract, which appears twice, with onion, garlic and a natural flavouring, and the pack says the bears are suitable for vegans.

Potato bears

The dough is made from dried potato with potato and maize starches, shaped into little teddy bears. The bears are airy and crisp, and they soften quickly in the mouth rather than giving a hard crunch.

Potato protein and maize dextrin

Potato protein and maize dextrin, made from the protein of potatoes and the starch of maize, are part of the dough with the starches.

The emulsifier

Mono and diglycerides of fatty acids are an emulsifier that helps the dough mix evenly. The pack's vegan statement covers them.

Potassium chloride and the salt figure

Potassium chloride appears twice, in the flavour and on its own. It tastes salty but contains no sodium, and the salt figure on a UK label is worked out from sodium. The label gives 0.52g of salt per 100g and 0.07g in a bag.

Salt

The Cheese bears carry 0.52g of salt per 100g and the Original bears 1.3g; both are amber on the front of pack scale.

Numbers for one bag

The pack gives 65 kcal (271 kJ), 3.3g of fat, 0.3g of saturates, 7.9g of carbohydrate, 0.5g of sugars, 0.7g of fibre, 0.5g of protein and 0.07g of salt for each 13g bag. That is about 3% of an average adult's daily energy reference intake, 5% of the fat and 1% of the salt.

Numbers per 100g

Per 100g the label gives 498 kcal (2081 kJ), 25g of fat, 2.5g of saturates, 61g of carbohydrate, 2g of sugars, 5.6g of fibre, 4.2g of protein and 0.52g of salt.

Reading the front of the pack

On the UK front of pack scale, per 100g, fat at 25g is red. Saturates at 2.5g are amber. Sugars at 2g are green. Salt at 0.52g is amber.

Small bags

At 13g, each bag is small, 65 kcal, sized for a child's lunchbox or a snack between meals. The listing counts the six bags as six servings.

Maize starch

Maize starch, from corn, sits in the dough with the potato starch, and maize dextrin, made from it, follows.

Carbohydrate and sugars

The label gives 61g of carbohydrate per 100g, of which 2g are sugars, green on the front of pack scale. Sugar is on the list, and there is 0.5g of sugars in a bag.

Fibre and protein

The label gives 5.6g of fibre and 4.2g of protein per 100g, and 0.7g of fibre in a 13g bag.

Sharing out

Small bags make it easy to give each child the same amount at a party, a picnic or a playdate, with no bowl to share.

Onion and garlic

Dried onion and dried garlic sit in the cheese flavour, a savoury base that rounds out the cheesy taste.

Rice flour and maltodextrin

Maltodextrin and rice flour lead the cheese flavour and carry it evenly over each bear.

Allergens and diet

No allergens from the UK list of 14 are highlighted in the published ingredients, and the published listing gives no may contain advice. The pack says the bears are gluten free and suitable for vegans and vegetarians. Recipes and factory arrangements change, so check the allergy advice on the pack you receive.

No artificial colours or flavours

The pack says there are no artificial colours or flavours. The colour comes from paprika powder, the last ingredient.

Sunflower oil

Sunflower oil is the only oil on the list, and the label gives 2.5g of saturates per 100g.

The pack

The orange bag carries a red new flash, the Pom-Bear name, a lime green cheese banner, the Pom-Bear mascot, a yellow bear in a crown and neckerchief giving a thumbs up, a few teddy shaped snacks, three ticks for gluten free, no artificial colours and no artificial flavours, and a large 6 pack mark.

Who it suits

A mild, cheesy potato snack in a small bag suits children and anyone who likes a soft crunch, and the vegan and gluten free statements suit many tables.

At a party

Tip a few bags into a bowl for a children's party, beside sandwiches, fruit and a plain Pom-Bear bowl.

In a lunchbox

A bag goes beside a sandwich, a yoghurt and a piece of fruit.

Distributor

As well as the freepost address for KP Snacks, the listing names Tayto Snacks, of Ashbourne in County Meath, Ireland, as a distributor.

Storage and packaging

The listing advises a cool, dry place away from bright light. The published recycling guidance says the whole packaging can be recycled with carrier bags at large supermarkets and should not go in home recycling.

Other Pom-Bear

We also stock Pom-Bear Original, in six bag and twelve bag multipacks.

The published listing gives the United Kingdom as the country of origin. The tasting notes on this page are our own editorial assessment against the current pack format and the brand's published description.