Choose crisps for an office snack by comparing the energy per 100 g and per planned portion, rather than relying on terms such as ‘oven-baked’ or ‘lower fat’. According to Flink, Lay’s Oven Baked Natural contains 442 kcal per 100 g, compared with around 538 kcal per 100 g, calculated from the average value for crisps given by the Netherlands Nutrition Centre. When choosing, check the salt content too, and if you’re sharing, look at the ingredients and allergens as well.
You want crisps for a break or a shared bowl, but you also want to know how much you actually eat. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre gives 215 kcal per 40 g bowl for average crisps. So compare products by the same weight and decide on your portion in advance.
As well as the energy content, you want to know how much salt is in your planned portion. Compare the salt per 100 g, then work out how much that means for the amount you intend to eat.
If crisps are available in a shared space, you’ll want to check the ingredients and allergens in the chosen variety. Check the current packaging and leave it with the crisps so others can read the information too.
First, compare the nutritional values of specific flavours per 100 g. Then decide how many crisps will go in your bowl or sharing portion. Salt and ingredients need to be checked separately: a lower energy value doesn’t answer those questions.
| What to consider | What to check when buying | Who it matters to |
|---|---|---|
| Energy per snack | Compare kcal per 100 g and calculate the amount for your planned portion. | If I have crisps during a break, I want to know how much energy is in my bowl. For around 50% of consumers, lower energy per snack is the top priority. |
| Salt | Compare salt per 100 g and per planned portion. | I don’t want to base my choice on kcal alone if I’m also watching my salt intake. Salt is the top priority for around 30% of consumers. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the current ingredients and allergen information, and keep the packaging available when sharing. | When colleagues are sharing the same crisps, I want to check in advance whether the variety meets their dietary requirements. For around 20% of consumers, suitability is the first consideration. |
These descriptions don’t tell you how many kcal or how much salt the chosen flavour contains per 100 g.
Compare the energy, fat and salt values on the label for the specific variety, then calculate them for your portion.
You can easily eat more than the bowl you had in mind without realising it. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre gives 215 kcal per 40 g for average crisps.
Measure out your chosen amount into a bowl first instead of eating straight from the bag.
Lentil crisps aren’t automatically lower in energy. Albert Heijn gives 442 kcal and 1.7 g of salt per 100 g for BioToday Sea Salt Lentil Crisps.
Assess the ingredients and nutritional values separately, using the same weight as the crisps you’re comparing them with.
If you’re sharing a snack, the ingredients and allergen information must match the bag you’ve actually chosen.
Check the packaging before putting the crisps out, and leave it available for colleagues who want to read the label.
The Oven Baked variety is one option to compare with regular crisps on nutritional value.
Original has a stated serving size of 30 g, making it easier to compare measured portions.
Smiths Sticks is another shape of crisp to consider if flavour and packaging influence your choice.
The retailer’s category for crisps with less fat or salt offers a range of products to compare side by side.
The lower-fat crisps category can help you find oven-baked and other varieties to compare.
Snack Day Oven-Baked Crisps are another oven-baked variety to assess by checking the label.
These two oven-baked varieties are worth considering if you want to portion out crisps for an office break. Check the nutritional information for your chosen flavour before deciding which portion suits your plan.
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For anyone looking for oven-baked crisps to portion out for an office break.
Flink gives this variety as containing 442 kcal and 0.84 g of salt per 100 g. Use the nutritional information on the current packaging to decide how much to put in your bowl.
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For anyone who wants to portion out sea salt-flavoured oven-baked crisps for an office break.
The bag contains 125 g. Compare the nutritional values per 100 g on the packaging, then calculate them for the amount you want to eat.
No. The cooking method alone doesn’t tell you how much energy a variety of crisps provides. Flink gives Lay’s Oven Baked Natural as containing 442 kcal per 100 g. Compare this with the nutritional values for the specific variety you want to buy and with your planned portion.
First, compare products per 100 g, then calculate the values for the amount in your bowl. The Netherlands Nutrition Centre gives 215 kcal and 0.53 g of salt per 40 g bowl for average crisps. This is a comparison measure, not a portion size you need to stick to.
Check the ingredients and allergens on the current packaging, and keep it with the crisps so it’s available to everyone. The Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority says allergens must be clearly listed in the ingredients list on prepacked foods.
No. The main ingredient alone doesn’t determine the energy content. Albert Heijn gives BioToday Sea Salt Lentil Crisps as containing 442 kcal and 1.7 g of salt per 100 g. Compare these values with those for a specific variety of potato crisps using the same weight.
No. A claim about fat doesn’t automatically tell you how much energy or salt a product contains. Check the nutritional information for your chosen flavour for both values, and compare products per 100 g and per planned portion.
