NEW YORK — Kind Healthy Snacks will reduce the calories listed on product labels in 95% of its nut bar portfolio with the reductions ranging from 10 to 30 calories per bar, the company said Jan. 14. One example is the calorie count in the Dark Chocolate Nuts & Sea Salt bar dropping to 180 calories from 200 calories.
The company said U.S. Department of Agriculture research showing whole nuts, including almonds and cashews, have fewer calories than originally thought allows Kind to make the calorie changes on labels without reducing the amount of nuts in the bars.
“Kind has always prioritized using and celebrating whole nuts as the main ingredient in our nutrition bar portfolio,” said Daniel Lubetzky, founder and executive chairman of Kind. “This research indicates that nuts not only contain fewer digestible carbohydrates but are just as nutrient-dense as they always have been with the same amount of protein and essential healthy fats that contribute to heart health.”
Kind bars contain nuts such as whole cashews and whole roasted almonds.
The U.S.D.A. research occurred at the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center in Beltsville, Md. One study found the mean value of 137 calories per serving of cashews was 16% lower than typically is found on food labels. Another study found calories were overestimated by 25% in whole natural almonds, 19% in whole roasted almonds and 17% in chopped roasted almonds. The researchers found not all the calories in the nuts were used by the human body.
“Nuts remain a nutrient-dense snack, but the number of calories provided in a single serving has been grossly miscalculated,” said David Baer, Ph.D., a physiologist within the U.S.D.A.’s Agricultural Research Service. “Our findings suggest a more accurate representation of calories, and food companies using nuts in their products will be able to provide clearer information to the public.”
The calorie changes on product labels do not go astray of U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations, according to Kind.
“In the U.S., the F.D.A. outlines six acceptable methods for calculating calories displayed on a nutrition label,” said Stephanie Csaszar, in-house nutritionist for Kind. “Our adoption of these revised calorie measurements falls within that regulation.”