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Reviews > Food > Packaged Meals > LonoLife Broths > Test Report by joe schafferLono Life Broths
Test series
TESTER INFORMATION: NAME: Joe Schaffer EMAIL: never2muchstuff(AT)yahoo(DOT)com AGE: 71 GENDER: Male HEIGHT: 5'9" (1.75 m) WEIGHT: 170 lb (79.4 kg) HOME: Bay Area, California USA I enjoy California's central Sierras, camping every month with a goal to match my age in nights out each year; about 30 solo. In summer I'm a route hiker moving nearly every day. For comfort I lug tent, mattress, chair, etc. Summer trips have been 5-8 days; 40 lb (18 kg), about half food and water related; about 5 miles (8 km) per hiking day. I winter camp most often at 6,000 to 7,000 ft (1,800 to 2,000 m); 2 to 3 nights; 50 lb (23 kg); 1 to 2 miles (1.6 to 6.4 km) on snowshoes. THE PRODUCT: Manufacturer: Lono Life Web site: www.lonolife.com Broth Products: (tested) (individual stick gross weight) Chicken Bone Broth, 5/8 oz (16 g) $19.99 US for 10 stick pkg Beef Bone Broth, 5/8 oz (16 g) $19.99 US for 10 stick pkg Thai Beef Bone Broth, 1/2 oz (15 g) $19.99 US for 10 stick pkg Protein Coffee, 1/2 oz (15 g) $17.99 US for 10 stick pkg Made in: not shown  MFR Headquarters: Oceanside, CA USA MFR STATS: (per serving, 1 serving per stick; copied from pkg) Chicken: 48 cal; 10 g protein; 3 g carbs; 0 g total fat; 0 mg cholesterol; 584 mg sodium; 0 g sugar; 3 g fiber Beef: 50 cal; 10 g protein; 3 g carbs; 0 g transfat; 1 g sat fat; <5 mg cholesterol; 503 mg sodium; 0 g sugar; 3 g fiber Thai: 50 cal; 10 g protein;<1 g carbs; 0 g transfat; 1 g total fat;<5 mg cholesterol; 410 mg sodium; 0 g sugar; 0 g fiber Coffee: 45 cal; 10 g protein; 2 g carbs; 0 g total fat; 0 mg cholesterol; 10 mg sodium; 0 g sugar; 0 g fiber Ingredients: Chicken: Broth, chicory root, yeast extract, salt, natural flavors, black pepper, sage, thyme Beef: Beef collagen, chicory root, beef, salt, yeast extract, natural flavors, black pepper Thai: Beef collagen, beef, salt, curry powder, yeast extract, coconut flavor, natural flavors, ginger, spices Coffee: Hydrolyzed collagen, 100% arabica soluble coffee MFR Description (excerpted from website): Nutritious, delicious grass fed bone broth, flavored and unflavored collagen, protein coffee plant-based protein for people who want to get outside, drink their nutrition in easy, single-serve doses, and get back to what they love, refreshed and refueled. Other products/packages: 16 other products available, many in several package options Directions: Add contents to 8 oz (0.24 L) hot water; stir. Received: 2/21/2019 MY MEASURES: Each stick pkg: 6 x 1 1/4 x 3/4 in (15 x 3 x 2 cm) 10-stick pkg: 5 x 9 1/2 x 2 3/4 in (13 x 24 x 7 cm) Chicken: 6 1/4 oz (177 g) Beef: 6 1/8 oz (174 g) Thai: 5 5/8 oz (158 g) Coffee: 5 3/4 oz (161 g) MY DESCRIPTION: This line of products requires no refrigeration in storage and minimal preparation--stir package contents in hot water. Best-by date of 02/13/2021 for the coffee product; other packages have no best-by date. No indication of caffeine is listed. All four products are claimed to be gluten-free, indicating there are no grains. The chicken and beef products are paleo, meaning cave people would have found similar make-up in their diet. A quick internet search says collagen is found in bones, tendons, ligaments and flesh. Collagen is the main component of connective tissue. It is singularly the most abundant protein in mammals, making up about 30% of whole-body protein content. IMPRESSIONS: I've eaten hot dogs, so I've obviously no compunction about ingesting leftover animal parts of any kind. The protein-to-weight ratio is roughly two-and-one-half times that of peanut butter. To my liking all other stats look equally terrific. I think I could stand less sodium, but even that is roughly 30% of a package of ramen. The test will tell how much food the tummy thinks it has after consuming a serving of product; and whether the carotids hammer in the aftermath. I'd like to know how much caffeine I might be getting in the coffee product. I'm sensitive to it, so I may quickly find out. The individual 'sticks' are light and small; with insignificant packaging to carry in and out. Food-to-tare ratio is very high. The 'stick' packages seem to have a lot of air in them, adding what would seem unnecessary bulk. Even I can heat water and stir something in it, so the cooking required suits me rather well. Evidently they do require hot water, the making of which is not always convenient for 'quick hit' food. I don't always want a hot drink. In weight-crazy packing it will be necessary to attempt a balance between cold and hot snack food/drink mixes. I'm looking forward to testing these products in the field to see if they tame the tiger and stoke the furnace as claimed. LONG TERM REPORT Field Conditions:
1. Mar 29-Apr 1, 2019: Loon Lake, Eldorado National Forest, California, USA. Three nights backpacking, one camp. Snow camping. 50 F days / 25 F nights (10 to -4 C). 2. April 17-20, 2019: Tahoe National Forest, three nights backpacking 1 1/2 mi (2.5 km) on snow. 55 lb (25 kg) lv weight. 6,400 ft (1,950 m); 32-65 F (0-18 C); mostly clear and warm. 3. April 25, 2019: Lake Chabot, urban day hike, 9 mi (14 km). 70 F (20 C). 4. May 1-4, 2019: Catfish Lake, Stanislaus National Forest, three nights backpacking 8 mi (13 km). Leave weight 45 lb (20 kg). 5,600-6,100 ft (1,700-1,900 m); 35-75 F (2-24 C). Clear and sunny. 5. May 10-14, 2019: Kibbie Creek, Stanislaus National Forest, California. 4 nights backpacking, 15 mi (24 km); leave weight 45 lb (20 kg); 3 camps; 40-70 F (4-21 C), sunny, no wind; 5,100-6,400 ft (1,550-1,950 m). 6. May 29-Jun 2, 2019: Kibbie Ridge, Stanislaus National Forest, California. 4 nights, 2 mi (3 km) hiking and 11 mi (18 km) backpacking; leave weight 40 lb (18 kg); 3 camps; 45-75 F (7-24 C), half sunny, half cloudy with a few spits of rain and two heavy showers; 5,100-6,700 ft (1,550-2,000 m). Impressions: Bone broth coffee: At home I cranked up a loaf of 'dung' bread dumping in the entire contents of one package, dry. I thought that would be a lot. The standard batch includes a few fistfuls of walnuts and cheese; along with enough oats and bran to stop a bullet. I generally don't care for the taste of coffee except in high-value foods like ice cream and chocolate. As I sat around the campfire enjoying the result, I noted a faint and pleasing delicate back flavor of coffee. I would have almost have to have known what was in it to identify that aspect of the taste spectrum. I liked it enough I'll do it again. Maybe two packets. Directions say to mix with 8 oz (230 gm) hot water. I sampled a packet in a liter (33 oz) of cold tap water. Rarely do I drink coffee, but after four hours in the drink bottle it tasted exactly like coffee to me. The texture was 'clean'; the broth meal dissolved completely and remained in solution. There was no after taste. I found the drink refreshing on a warm day and long hike. I decided I should treat myself to another when I got home. After sampling about half cold and half hot, I'm not able to say which I prefer. I do find myself frequently thinking it's time to have another. I will buy this product. Chicken broth: I'm the one to stab the heart floating in the chicken fat at the bottom of the roasting pan, and if I can get to it fast enough, the liver and gizzard too. I like chicken parts. The first flavor that hit me--and I do mean that literally--was chicken liver. It brought back fond memories of college Saturday morning chicken liver and scrambled eggs. The back flavor was more reminiscent of a weekend 60 years ago spent scalding the feathers off slaughtered chickens. The scent was so strong it became a taste. This broth tastes powerfully of the rudimentary parts of chicken. No wimpy garlic, rosemary or lemony wistfulness. This broth says CHICKEN. I started off with a packet at full strength, and eventually diluting the samples until probably three times the recommended portion of water. Glugging the broth cold on a hot hike didn't seem like a grand idea, but a tester must find the limits. The powder dissolved in a few minutes. I liked it so much I tried it several more times. I feel like the broth gives a little kick to the step when a fellow is getting long on the tooth. It works much better for me than an energy drink as there's no sugar buzz and crash. Beef broth: Ditto, except it's liquid BEEF. It seems similar to bouillon, but not as salty and with a considerably more earthy flavor and of course a more textured feel. I tried it at the recommended dose and thought it a little too high octane to my liking. By the time I got my sampling to maybe one-third strength it seemed to mellow enough to please my simple palate. Thai curry: Mid-trip at Tahoe I had to get up with the chickens and scamper back to civilization. It was too early to eat, but I didn't want to be wandering the streets looking hungry and deprived if my business took longer than expected. The ideal solution, it turned out, was a mug of Thai curry. The spice woke me up and got my tasters in tune for the day; and the heartiness of the broth kept me slogging happily to and back over the snow. It was so good I fired up another one when I returned to the serious business of lounging in my chair. I like this stuff a lot and had a couple or more each outing. I enjoyed sipping the broths. For a one-word description, I would say 'hearty'. One packet definitely smacks the tiger belly right between the eyes. For grins I took maybe a quarter-teaspoon (1 gm) dry sample of each broth. It dissolves in the mouth much quicker than powdered peanut butter. I wouldn't want to make a routine of getting it down dry, but it's good to know it will. The packet is remarkably tough for a tare weight of only one gram (1/25th oz). In fact I have to cut it open. I wonder why it needs so much air in it. One package, who cares. But on a longer outing with six or eight, the packages consume a lot of seemingly unnecessary real estate in the bear can, especially at altitude when they puff up. Quick shots: a) simple b) tasty c) high food value Thank you Lono Life and BackpackGearTest.org for the opportunity to test this product. This completes my reporting for this test. Read more gear reviews by joe schaffer Reviews > Food > Packaged Meals > LonoLife Broths > Test Report by joe schaffer | ||||
