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Reviews > Food > Energy Bars and Drinks > KIND Maple Pumpkin Seed Bar > Owner Review by Marina Batzke

KIND MAPLE PUMPKIN SEEDS BAR
BY MARINA BATZKE
OWNER REVIEW
July 29, 2014

TESTER INFORMATION

NAME: Marina Batzke
EMAIL: mbbp2013 (at) hotmail (dot) com
AGE: 54
LOCATION: Los Angeles County, California, USA
GENDER: F
HEIGHT: 5' 5" (1.65 m)
WEIGHT: 130 lb (59.00 kg)

I converted from day hiking and car camping to backpacking in spring 2013. Since then, I have selectively purchased new, more lightweight gear, while I still carry some heavier gear from my car camping trips. I always hike with a group and I like the gear talk when in camp. I am a tent camper looking for ways to lighten my pack. My backpacking trips are currently weekend excursions in Southern California, USA. If my business travel allows me to get away, I try to backpack one or two weekends a month.

PRODUCT INFORMATION

Manufacturer: KIND, LLC
Year of Manufacture: 2014
Manufacturer's Website: http://www.KINDsnacks.com
MSRP: US $28.50 for a case with 40 bars ($0.71 per bar)
Serving Size: 1 bar with Listed Weight: 1.2 oz (35 g)
Measured Weight: 1.2 oz (35 g)
IMAGE 1
Entire bar about half the width of a U.S. dollar bill

FIELD USE

3-day backpack Inyo National Forest, SW of Bishop, California, USA
Daytime Temperatures: 34 F (1 C) March

2-day backpack Joshua Tree National Park, California, USA
Daytime Temperatures: 80 F (27 C) April

2-day backpack Joshua Tree National Park, California, USA
Daytime Temperatures: 93 F (34 C) April

Dayhike Mt. Baldy, Southern California, USA
Daytime Temperatures: 75 F (24 C) June

3-day backpack Mt. San Jacinto, Southern California, USA
Daytime Temperatures: 76 F (24 C) June

4-day backpack Yosemite National Park, Northern California, USA
Daytime Temperatures: 79 F (26 C) July

4-day backpack San Gorgonio Wilderness, Southern California, USA
Daytime Temperatures: 75 F (24 C) July

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

The KIND Healthy Grains 'Maple Pumpkin Seeds with Sea Salt' bar contains 5 super grains: oats, millet, quinoa, amaranth and buckwheat. Super grains consist of fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals along with carbohydrates. This 1.2 (35 g) KIND Healthy Grains bar contains 0.63 oz (18 g) of 100% whole grains. These five grains along with other ingredients are pressed into an approximately 3.125 in L by 2.75 in W x 0.5 in D (8 cm L x 7 cm W x 1.3 cm D) bar. The various grains show in their yellow, beige and green colors as flakes and tiny balls, i.e., this bar does not look like ground-up and mashed-together paste.
IMAGE 2
Close-up view

One cardboard packing unit contains five bars, each individually wrapped in plastic. I started out taking one wrapped KIND bar and one of my other favorite brand's bars on a typical 2-day backpacking trip to enjoy one each day. But I started enjoying the KIND 'Maple Pumpkin Seeds' bar so much more that I have made my "other favorite bar" my emergency food supply: I have it in my pack or bear canister as back-up food.
IMAGE 3
Pulling off a chunk off the bar

When I am ready for a snack, I pull the KIND plastic wrapper open on one end and start pulling small chunks off the KIND bar. I enjoy munching on each chunk. The grains give me something grainy to chew on, so for me this is not a quick "bite off and swallow" snack. The grains cling together by shiny honey and maple syrup, yet I do not find this bar's flavor too sweet. I detect a hint of coconut taste and even though I do not like coconut, the taste is very slight and barely noticeable. Overall, I like the natural, non-artificial taste of the bar.
The 'Maple Pumpkin Seeds with Sea Salt' bar is gluten free (without the protein composite found in wheat, kamut, spelt, barley, rye and triticale).
The bar contains non-GMO canola oil. GMO stands for genetically modified organisms. So this bar's canola oil does not come from genetic engineering.
IMAGE 4
Nutrition facts

SUMMARY

I can be a picky eater and do not like a lot of the available snack bars because they contain nuts, excessive coconut or other ingredients I do not care for.
I got my first KIND 'Maple Pumpkin Seeds with Sea Salt' bar at an introductory booth inside a healthy foods store and got hooked. I truly enjoy chewing the crunchy, whole grains and I do not rush eating this bar but instead enjoy every bite.
Originally I wanted to mention under 'Things I do not like' that this is a higher priced snack bar compared to my previously other favorite brand, so I try to stock up when these are on sale. Also this particular flavor is sometimes a bit hard to find in stores. When I went to the KIND website, I noticed they offer my Maple Pumpkin Seeds Bars in a case of 40 at their $27.00 Advantage Auto-Shipment Price with free shipping ($0.68 per bar).

THINGS I LIKE

Crunchy, chewy grains
Great taste
Less sugar than my previously other favorite bar
Healthy
Special low price offer when I order a box online

THINGS I DON'T LIKE

This particular flavor not available in all stores

SIGNATURE

Marina Batzke

This report was created with the BackpackGearTest.org Report Writer Version 1. Copyright 2014. All rights reserved.
Read more gear reviews by Marina Batzke

Reviews > Food > Energy Bars and Drinks > KIND Maple Pumpkin Seed Bar > Owner Review by Marina Batzke



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