Holding Out For a Fruit Heroes ! (review)

(Sorry, I came over all Bonnie Tyler there for a moment !)

Being in a dual nationality family, it's always interesting to see differing viewpoints on parenting and life in general. Eating between meals always seems to get really bad press in the UK, but in France, it's a recognised part of the day, whether at home or at school. Maybe it's because the schoolday is longer - for infant and primary school children, it's usually 8.30-11.30am then 1.30-4.30pm (and sometimes longer if they need to go to afterschool daycare) - but parents have to provide a snack for mid-morning and sometimes mid-afternoon. (It used to be both but in the interests of preventing child obesity, the powers that be decided to ban the afternoon snack because most children go home and have another one anyway.) Even at home and at weekends, "le quatre heures" is a recognised mini-meal and many French people are convinced that British people do the same, downing tools for "tea time" every day mid afternoon!

I was interested to read the press release for new fruity snack Fruit Heroes, which seems to follow the French logic. It explains : "Several dietary studies show that children receive some of their daily energy from eating between meals – which makes good sense. Your child needs several smaller meals during the day, to make sure the energy level, mood, concentration and learning ability is at its best."

Obviously you have to pick the right snacks and Fruit Heroes seem to tick all the right boxes. They contain no added sugar or salt, no colourings or preservatives or sulphur dioxide, they are high in fibre and are suitable for coeliacs, vegetarians, vegans and those who need a dairy-free diet. They are made of freshly picked and sun dried fruit (the majority of which is actually dates) that isn't cooked or baked - it's just pressed into shape - so each bar counts as one of your child's 5-a-day.

To be honest, they sounded too good to be true or at least to good to be tasty, so I was pleasantly surprised when we had a taste test. We got all four flavours to try - Strawberry, Blackcurrant, Banana and Apple & Raspberry - and they all got a thumbs-up. I tried them too and they're not just good for kids - I'd happily tuck into these as a sweet treat and at just 60-65 calories per bar, they're a guilt-free and diet-friendly option too.

The Fruit Heroes website also has some recipes that you can try out using the bars in home baking, which is something I may look at if they don't all disappear before I can get a look in ! If you fancy giving them a go, they're on offer until 29th March at Tesco's so you can get a box of five for 99p, which is half price.

star rating : 5/5

RRP : £1.99 for a pack of 5 or 45p each (but see Tesco's offer above)

 for more information : www.fruitheroes.co.uk

Disclosure : We received the product in order to write an honest review.