Initial Report – ProBar Nutty Banana Boom



Review Date: June 22, 2006

Name: Pat McNeilly
Age: 43
Gender: Male
Height: 5’ 8” (1.7 m)
Weight: 165 lb (75 kg)
Email address: pmcneilly@osophs.dhhs.gov
City, State, Country: Gaithersburg, MD, USA

Backpacking Background:
I have been hiking for at least 20 years but backpacking for only the last three years.  Most of my backpacking is done as overnight trips and occasional weekend and weeklong trips.  My typical packweight is approximately 18 to 20 lb (8 to 9 kg) before food or water.  Most of my backpacking is the three season variety in the mountains of Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia.  In addition to backpacking, I also fish, hunt, and have been involved in disaster relief.  As a result, some of my backpacking equipment gets use in a number of different venues.

Product Information:
Product: Nutty Banana Boom
Manufacturer: ProBar
Year of Manufacture: 2006
URL: http://www.theprobar.com/
MSRP: Not listed
Weight: 3 oz (85 g) [as listed];  3.2 oz (91 g) [as measured]
Package Dimensions: 6 in (15 cm) x 3.5 in (9 cm) x 0.75 in (2 cm)
Bar Dimensions: 2.75 in (7 cm) x 2.75 in (7 cm) x 0.75 in (2 cm)

Product Ingredients (as listed on the wrapper):
Natural unsalted peanut butter (peanuts), organic brown rice syrup, organic barley malt syrup, fruit and nut mix (organic raisin, organic sunflower seeds, juice sweetened papaya, juice sweetened pineapple, dates, cashews, unsweetened coconut, pumpkin seeds, brazil nuts), granola mix (oats, grape concentrate, expeller pressed canola oil, almonds, oat bran, natural orange oil, natural vitamin E), granola mix (organic oats, organic evaporated cane juice, organic expeller pressed canola oil, crisp rice (organic brown rice flour, organic evaporated cane juice, organic molasses, sea salt), organic flax seeds, organic oat solids, hemp seed), granola (rolled oats, raisins, cornflakes (milled corn, evaporated cane juice, barley malt syrup), rolled rye, organic brown crisp rice (organic brown rice, organic malted barley syrup), almonds, apples, epasote, organic cardamom seed, organic fennel seed, organic fenugreek seed, organic nutmeg), organic sunflower seeds, chopped dates (dates, oat flour), organic banana chips, organic unsweetened coconut, organic flax seeds, raw cashews, organic brown sesame seeds, carob chips, (whole grain malted barley and corn, fractionated palm kernel oil, carob powder, soy lecithin), raw almonds, natural banana flavor.

Product Review:
The ProBar Nutty Banana Boom comes packaged in 10 in (25 cm) x 6 in (15 cm) x 4 in (10 cm) boxes of twelve bars with a bright yellow and black color scheme.  Each bar is individually wrapped in a silver Mylar wrapping with a multicolor label.  The label indicates that the flavor is nutty banana boom and has pictures of bananas and peanuts.  The label also described that the product is for “high performance whole food nutrition” and may be used for endurance, recovery and meal replacement.  In addition, the front of the package indicates that the product is all natural with no preservatives, is “blended not baked,” contains 15 whole foods, and is 100% vegan.  The product does appear to be what I expected after reading the manufacturer’s website.  However, the Nutty Banana Boom is not currently listed as one of the flavor options available.  The back of the package provides a brief description of the bar, nutritional facts, and contact information regarding the manufacturer, including address, phone number and website.  The back of the package also states, “ALLERGY INFORMATION: Product contains tree nuts and seeds and is packaged on equipment that processes legumes (peanuts).”  The product came with an expiration date of April 2007 written on the wrapper.  I did note that the lot number and the expiration date easily rub off the wrapper.  This could be a problem if I have ProBars that have been sitting around for a while and I am trying to determine if they are still fresh. 

The wrapper is oversized compared with the actual bar itself and there is some air trapped inside the wrapper.  However, the amount of air inside does not appear to fill the entire volume of the package.  The product inside is able to slide around and the packaging can be folded over on itself to a certain extent.  The extra volume produced by the excess air could be a problem if space is an issue when packing for multi-day trips.  I don’t see this as much of a problem for dayhikes but I plan to keep an eye on this during the testing.  Once open the wrapper folds easily but does not stay in place when folded.  I found that I needed to tape the wrapper shut if I wanted to really protect the bar when saving a portion for a later time

I decided to dive in and try it.  The wrapper was easy to open and did not adhere to the product.  Upon opening the package, I could instantly smell bananas.  I took this as a good sign.  The bar itself is a square product that is slightly sticky to the touch.  The ProBar appears to be a mixture of all the ingredients which is simply pressed together.  Each of the ingredients can be identified throughout the bar.  I then pulled the bar apart (as opposed to breaking the bar – it is not hard or brittle enough for that).  The interior of the bar had a dry look to it but I could still make out the individual ingredients.

I was pleasantly surprised with my initial taste of the product.  Instead of being dry, as I expected, the Nutty Banana Boom was quite moist and had a definitive banana taste.  The flavor reminded me a great deal of banana bread, which I thought was a plus for the product.  I then thought that I didn’t really get any peanut butter taste in that bite.  After a few more small bites, I noticed that I would initially taste banana but there would be a subtle lingering taste of peanuts.  I would find myself having to try and focus to find the peanut flavor.  This had me wishing that there was a more pronounced peanut butter flavor to go along with the banana flavor.

The bar was soft but had some crunch which comes from the nuts and seeds in the product.  I did not seem to taste the individual ingredients in the Nutty Banana Boom.  All the ingredients seemed to meld together to produce a rather uniform taste.  For example, I noticed that if I bit into a raisin, I didn’t particularly taste raisin.  The raisin simply gave a certain amount of sweetness to the product.  I also noted that the product was chewy and did stick somewhat to my teeth.  This didn’t seem to be a problem as the bar was not as sticky as taffy or caramel.  I felt my dental fillings were safe.

After eating half a bar I was feeling rather full and felt I should put the rest away for later.  The product is described as being a meal replacement and this does have me wondering if one bar might not suffice in place of a meal.  The nutritional facts on the wrapper indicate that one bar is a single serving and provides 400 calories and 21 g of fat.  After eating a bar and looking at the product labeling, I am beginning to believe that the Nutty Banana Boom would be just the type of product I want to eat when participating in activities like backpacking, biking, etc.  I might not want to eat a full bar as a regular snack when sitting at my desk at work but out on the trail this might be just the thing.  I also had opportunity to eat a ProBar for breakfast before going to work to see if it would hold me over until lunch.  I can say that I was not searching for an early lunch and so far I am happy with how satisfying the product is.

At present, I am very happy with the taste and texture of the ProBar Nutty Banana Boom.  My first reaction is that this is one of the better energy bar products that I have tasted.  I am looking forward to testing this product and seeing how well it holds up during the tests and how I feel about the taste over time.

Test Plan:
There are a number of things which I expect to evaluate during the testing of the ProBars, however there are a couple things which I feel are necessary to briefly discuss upfront.  One thing to note is that the ProBar wrapper clearly indicates that one serving is an entire bar.  However, the ProBar website has a frequently asked question section on why the ProBar is a two serving product.  It appears that the serving size has changed since the original ProBars were released.  My testing will be done with the assumption that the Nutty Banana Boom is expected to be a single serving.

The ProBar website has a good deal of information regarding the bar’s ingredients and justifications for amount of fat and protein it contains.  There is also some information about the health effects of the various components of the bar, including protection from cancer, building strong immunity, and support of the adrenals.  The test period will not be structured properly or long enough to evaluate any of these health effects.  In fairness to the manufacturer, the company does not claim that the ProBar produces these health effects but rather provides information about what is believed to be the health benefits of the components.

With that being said, I plan test the ProBar Nutty Banana Boom with special focus on the following:

Taste and Visual Appeal:
▪  Do I want to eat another Nutty Banana Boom after having consumed 10 or 15 already?
▪  Does the product remain moist even if taken out of the wrapper? 
▪  Do I need to chug down a liter of water after eating one?

Durability:
▪  Is there any visual change or spoilage after having the product exposed to heat?  I plan to keep a ProBar on the dashboard of my truck until the end of the testing period to evaluate this.
▪  Is there any flavor change when the product is frozen?  How about after it is thawed?
▪  Does ProBar hold together after being left in a pack or briefcase for extended periods?

Portion size and effects:
▪  Is the Probar satisfying enough during a hike? 
▪  After eating one, am I wishing for more or am I really satisfied with only half a bar? 
▪  Do I seem to get an energy boost or any of the other effects noted on the website. 
▪  Do I experience any untoward effects?  Lets hope not!

Packaging: 
▪  Does the wrapper adequately protect the product from moisture or damage? 
▪  Is it easy to open or do I need to break out a knife to get into it? 
▪  Does excess air in the packaging make a difference when packing for a trip? 
▪  Can I “squish” the product in the package so I can squeeze it into a loaded pack?

Summary:
The ProBar Nutty Banana Boom is a dense moist product that has a definite banana flavor and a chewy texture.  Although the ProBar has a banana flavor, there is only a subtle peanut flavor. The ingredients are all natural and are not cooked.  The ProBar is filling and seems to provide enough energy to use in place of a meal. 

Things I like:

    1. Good banana flavor
    2. Chewy texture with some crunch
    3. Satisfying

Things I don’t like:

    1. Only mild peanut flavor
    2. Expiration date rubs off easily

I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to ProBar and BackpackGearTest.org for the opportunity to test this product.