For a lower-fat maize snack, compare total fat per 100g before choosing a pack size that suits the snack occasion; “baked” alone does not tell you which has less fat. In the four puffed-snack products compared here, Tesco Groceries lists 22.7g fat per 100g for Free From Cheese Balls and 23.9g for Onion Maize Snack Rings, below the 25g and 33g listed by Walkers UK for Monster Munch Pickled Onion and standard Wotsits Really Cheesy respectively. The Tesco products are sharing bags, while Monster Munch has individual 20g packs; check salt and allergens on the exact pack too.
Compare the amount in an individual pack with the serving you would take from a sharing bag. NHS Healthier Families recommends fruit and vegetables as snacks for children and advises aiming for no more than two packaged snacks a day.
Use fat per 100g to compare different pack sizes. The four puffed maize snacks discussed below have different fat values, so neither a familiar name nor “baked” wording settles the choice.
The named Tesco Free From maize snacks are labelled suitable for vegans and free from milk, wheat and gluten. The Walkers Wotsits product lists milk, while Monster Munch Pickled Onion lists milk and soya; check the exact flavour and pack against your requirements.
Start with the per-100g nutrition values, then consider the amount you plan to serve and the exact pack’s dietary information.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Total fat | Compare fat per 100g on the same basis. Tesco Groceries lists 22.7g for Free From Cheese Balls and 23.9g for Onion Maize Snack Rings; Walkers UK lists 25g for Monster Munch Pickled Onion and 33g for its standard Wotsits Really Cheesy product. | I want to compare fat content without assuming a baked snack has less fat. I’ll use the value on the exact pack I buy. |
| Serving size | Check both the pack size and the stated serving. Walkers UK lists 5g fat and 0.31g salt per 20g Monster Munch pack; Tesco Groceries gives values per 25g serving for its 150g sharing bags. | Separate packs may make it easier to set out one snack. With a sharing bag, I can decide how much to put in a bowl before opening it. |
| Allergens and labels | Read the exact flavour’s ingredients and allergen statement. Tesco Groceries labels the named Free From products vegan and free from milk, wheat and gluten; Walkers UK lists milk for Wotsits and milk and soya for Monster Munch Pickled Onion. | For a milk-free or vegan choice, I need the claim to apply to this particular product, not just its brand or its cheese flavour. |
| Salt | Compare salt per 100g as well as per serving. Tesco Groceries lists 1.73g salt per 100g for Free From Cheese Balls; Walkers UK lists 1.55g per 100g for Monster Munch Pickled Onion. | Lower fat is not my only comparison. I want to see what the serving I plan to offer contains. |
Walkers UK describes Wotsits as baked not fried, but lists 33g fat per 100g for its standard product, compared with 25g for Monster Munch Pickled Onion. Cooking wording is not a fat-content comparison.
Compare the per-100g figures on the packs, then look at the amount you expect to serve.
A 20g Monster Munch pack and a 150g Tesco Free From sharing bag represent different amounts of food. Their whole-pack figures do not answer which product has less fat per 100g.
Use per-100g values for the product comparison and the serving information to plan the snack.
The named Tesco Free From Cheese Balls are labelled free from milk, while Walkers UK lists milk for Wotsits. Monster Munch Pickled Onion lists milk and soya despite not being cheese-flavoured.
Check the allergen statement for the exact flavour and pack, particularly if its ingredients or packaging change.
Tesco Groceries lists 22.7g fat and 1.73g salt per 100g for Free From Cheese Balls. Walkers UK lists 25g fat and 1.55g salt per 100g for Monster Munch Pickled Onion: the product with less fat in this pair has more salt per 100g.
Read both values on the same per-100g basis, then check the stated serving.
These product-line examples help distinguish puffed maize snacks, dietary labels and familiar savoury alternatives; they do not describe every product under each brand.
The Onion Maize Snack Rings and Cheese Balls are 150g sharing bags with product-specific vegan and free-from labels, according to Tesco Groceries.
Walkers UK gives nutrition information per 20g pack for Monster Munch Pickled Onion, which is useful when planning a single snack.
Wotsits Really Cheesy is a baked corn snack for shoppers seeking that flavour and texture.
Quavers Cheese may be a familiar savoury alternative, but it does not fit a strict maize-snack choice.
These Joybuy options include popcorn, crunchy corn and puffed corn snacks for half-term occasions. Popcorn has a different texture from puffed maize snacks, and pack formats vary; compare each exact product’s nutrition and allergen label before choosing.
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Six separate 10g bags offer a defined amount for each snack occasion. This is popcorn rather than a puffed corn snack; check the exact pack’s nutrition and allergen statement if either affects your choice.
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This crunchy corn snack comes in a 115g bag, so decide how much to serve rather than treating the bag as one portion. Check its per-100g fat and salt values and allergen statement on the exact pack.
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The 70g bag is a sharing format rather than the separate 10g bags of the other Propercorn option here. Portion it before serving and compare the exact pack label if fat, salt or allergens are deciding factors.
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This 40g puffed-corn pack offers a different format from the sharing bags. Do not assume its pack size means it has less fat per 100g; compare the nutrition panel and check the ingredients for allergens.
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The separate 16.5g bags suit planned snack portions if the cheesy corn format is the preference. The Joybuy listing gives 31.9g fat per 100g and lists milk as an allergen; check this multipack’s label rather than using nutrition values from another Wotsits pack size.
No: compare total fat per 100g on the exact pack. Walkers UK describes its standard Wotsits Really Cheesy product as baked not fried and lists 33g fat per 100g, compared with 25g for Monster Munch Pickled Onion; Tesco Groceries lists 23.9g for Free From Onion Maize Snack Rings and 22.7g for Cheese Balls.
Do not use either phrase as a substitute for checking the exact product’s nutrition panel. GOV.UK says food businesses must follow rules when making nutrition claims, including “low fat”; compare fat per 100g before deciding which snack fits your purpose.
Tesco Groceries labels its Free From Onion Maize Snack Rings and Cheese Balls suitable for vegans and free from milk, wheat and gluten. Walkers UK lists milk for Wotsits and milk and soya for Monster Munch Pickled Onion, so check the precise flavour and pack.
Decide the amount to serve before opening a sharing bag, or choose an individual pack whose size suits the occasion. For children, NHS Healthier Families recommends fruit and vegetables as snacks and advises aiming for no more than two packaged snacks a day.