Organisers serving a light refreshment
If attendees will receive one bar at registration or during a tea break, compare calories for that individual portion rather than treating a pack or a 100 g figure as the serving.
Who is this for?
Organisers handling different dietary requests
Vegan and gluten-free labels answer specific dietary questions, but they do not replace an ingredient and allergen check for every flavour offered.
Organisers weighing up lighter and protein-led snacks
A smaller-calorie bar and a protein-led bar serve different catering briefs. Decide which type of snack the break calls for before comparing products.
What should you check?
Start with the portion you plan to hand out, then check whether each exact bar suits the dietary requests and purpose of the break.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Calories per bar | Compare kcal for the individual bar and note its weight. Tesco Groceries lists Eat Natural Apple at 86 kcal per 25 g bar, Graze Cocoa Vanilla Oat Boosts at 116 kcal per 30 g bar and Nakd Cocoa Orange at 138 kcal per 35 g bar. | I’m handing out one bar per person, so the calories in that bar matter more to this serving decision than a pack total. |
| Allergens | Read the current ingredients and ‘may contain’ statements for each flavour. Keep the original packaging or current product allergen information available where bars are served. | Guests need to be able to check a specific bar before choosing it; a vegan or gluten-free description alone cannot answer every allergy question. |
| Dietary labels | Check vegan and gluten-free labelling on the exact variant. Tesco Groceries lists Nakd Cocoa Orange as vegan and gluten free, but its allergen information also warns of possible soya, peanut and other nut traces. | If I offer a bar for a dietary request, I need its exact flavour and label to match that request without treating it as suitable for everyone. |
| Protein and fibre | Compare grams per bar alongside kcal and allergens. Tesco Groceries lists TREK High Protein Choc Caramel at 12 g protein and 159 kcal per 44 g bar; Nature Valley lists its Protein Peanut & Chocolate bar at around 10 g protein, around 4 g fibre and 196 kcal per 40 g bar. | For a protein-led snack table, I may choose a different bar than I would for a short break focused on smaller-calorie portions. |
| Order details | Confirm the exact flavour, bars per pack, current stock, delivery date and remaining shelf life with the supplier before fixing the menu. | I need enough of each agreed option for the event, with time to review any proposed substitution against the same dietary requirements. |
Mistakes to avoid
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Calling a smaller portion ‘low energy’
Calories per bar and calories per 100 g answer different questions. For UK food marketing, the condition published by legislation.gov.uk for a ‘low energy’ claim on solid food is no more than 40 kcal per 100 g.
Give the declared kcal for the bar being served. Check the per-100 g figure before using a regulated nutrition claim in catering copy.
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Choosing protein bars for a smaller-calorie brief
Tesco Groceries lists the TREK High Protein Choc Caramel bar at 159 kcal and 12 g protein per 44 g bar, while Nature Valley lists its Protein Peanut & Chocolate bar at 196 kcal and around 10 g protein per 40 g bar. Both exceed the per-bar calories of the Eat Natural, Graze Cocoa Vanilla and Nakd Cocoa Orange portions compared above.
Decide whether the break calls for a smaller-calorie portion or a protein-led option, then compare bars serving by serving.
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Assuming a dietary label settles an allergy question
Nakd Cocoa Orange is labelled vegan and gluten free but has nut-related allergen information; Eat Natural Apple contains almonds, and Nature Valley Protein Peanut & Chocolate contains peanuts.
Check every selected flavour’s current pack and make its allergen information available to attendees. Do not present a nut-containing bar as a nut-free choice.
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Fixing the menu from an old listing
A listed bar may not be orderable for the event: the Joybuy listing for Nakd Cocoa Orange 4 x 35 g said it was no longer available when recorded, and a Tesco Groceries listing for Alpen Light Jaffa Cake showed it out of stock.
Confirm stock, pack count, delivery timing and the exact variant with the supplier; review any alternative’s ingredients and allergens before accepting a substitution.
Brand and product-line references
These examples concern specific bars and flavours, not every product made by each brand.
Eat Natural
Tesco Groceries lists Apple Soft Fruit Bars at 86 kcal per individually wrapped 25 g bar.
- The Apple bar is labelled vegan and gluten free.
- It contains almonds, so it is not a nut-free option.
Graze
Tesco Groceries lists Cocoa Vanilla Oat Boosts at 116 kcal per 30 g bar and Cherry Bakewell Oat Boosts at 131 kcal per 30 g bar.
- The Cocoa Vanilla listing identifies it as suitable for vegans.
- Check the chosen flavour’s ingredients: the Cherry Bakewell listing includes oats, almonds and soya flour.
Nakd
Tesco Groceries lists Cocoa Orange at 138 kcal per 35 g bar, with vegan and gluten-free labelling.
- Its label also states that it has no added sugar; that does not describe its total sugar content.
- The bar contains cashews and may contain soya, peanuts and other nuts.
TREK
Tesco Groceries lists High Protein Choc Caramel at 12 g protein and 159 kcal per 44 g bar.
- The stated protein amount offers a measurable point of comparison when protein is part of the catering brief.
- The listing warns that the bar may contain cereals containing gluten, nuts, milk and sesame; check its full current allergen declaration.
Nature Valley
Nature Valley lists its Protein Peanut & Chocolate bar at about 10 g protein, about 4 g fibre and 196 kcal per 40 g bar.
- The stated protein and fibre quantities can be compared per bar with other protein-led options.
- It contains peanuts, soya and milk and may contain other tree nuts.
Alpen
Check the exact Alpen line and flavour before including it in a conference menu.
- An exact current product listing can establish its portion size and ingredients for comparison.
- Alpen’s own FAQ lists some former bar lines as no longer made, while the Tesco Groceries Alpen Light Jaffa Cake listing showed that flavour out of stock.
Joybuy snack-bar options
These Joybuy listings are snack-bar options to assess for a conference break. Compare the exact pack’s portion information and allergen label before choosing for attendees.
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Graze Protein Bites Cocoa, Vanilla Oat Squares 4 x 30g
For a conference portion, check the calories on this exact Cocoa, Vanilla pack rather than applying figures from another Graze bar. The pack contains four 30 g portions; its listed allergen precautions include oats, soya and possible nuts, peanuts, milk, eggs and sesame.
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Graze Oat Boosts Lemon Blueberry 4 x 30g
Compare the declared calories for this Lemon Blueberry portion with other bars planned for the break. This is a four-pack of 30 g bars; the listed precautions identify oats and soya and say the product may contain eggs, milk, mustard, nuts and peanuts.
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Nakd Blueberry Muffin Raw Fruit & Nut Bars 4 x 35g
Consider this fruit-and-nut variant only after checking that its ingredients fit the event’s dietary requests. The pack contains four 35 g bars; the listed allergen information identifies cashews and almonds and warns of possible peanuts and soya.
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Special K Dark Chocolate Snack 6 x 21.5g
The six 21.5 g portions allow a per-bar comparison for a short conference break. The listed ingredients include wheat, barley, oats, milk and soya; check the current pack for the full allergen declaration.
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Kellogg's Strawberry Nutri Grain Bars 6 Pack 222g
If a soft-baked bar suits the break, compare its declared calories per bar with the other portions on the menu. This is a six-bar, 222 g pack; the listed allergen information identifies wheat, soya and milk and warns of possible tree nuts.
Conference catering questions
Can I call these bars ‘low calorie’ in conference-catering copy?
State the kcal in the bar you will serve instead of treating a smaller portion as a ‘low energy’ product. For UK food marketing, the condition published by legislation.gov.uk for a ‘low energy’ claim on solid food is no more than 40 kcal per 100 g; a per-bar figure alone does not establish that condition.
What allergen information should be available when bars are served?
Make information for the exact bars available to attendees, including their ingredients and relevant allergen statements. GOV.UK and the Food Standards Agency state that food businesses must provide allergen information for prepacked and non-prepacked food and drink; Food Standards Scotland gives corresponding guidance for businesses in Scotland. Retaining the original wrappers at the serving point helps attendees check the product they are choosing.
Does vegan or gluten-free mean suitable for everyone with allergies?
No. Tesco Groceries lists Nakd Cocoa Orange as vegan and gluten free, but its allergen information warns of possible soya, peanut and other nut traces; the bar also contains cashews. Nature Valley’s gluten-free Protein Peanut & Chocolate bar contains peanuts, soya and milk. Check the exact flavour rather than relying on a dietary label as an allergy guarantee.
What should I confirm before placing a conference-sized order?
Confirm the exact product and flavour, pack count, current stock, delivery date, minimum remaining shelf life and how the supplier handles substitutions. Review the ingredients and allergen information of any proposed replacement before accepting it for the event.