For a morning tea break, compare protein per whole bar first, then check sugars, saturated fat, salt and energy on the same pack. Nature Valley lists around 10g protein per 40g bar for two Protein variants, while TREK lists 9g plant protein for its Protein Flapjacks. The right choice also depends on the exact bar’s ingredients, allergens and dietary suitability; protein wording alone cannot settle those checks.
If you want a ready-to-eat bar between breakfast and lunch, compare the protein in the whole bar with its sugars, saturated fat and energy per serving. The NHS advises using nutrition labels to compare foods rather than relying on front-of-pack wording alone.
TREK describes its Protein Flapjacks as a plant-based, gluten-free option with 9g plant protein. Check the exact flavour and pack against your dietary requirements before choosing it.
Check the ingredients and precautionary allergen statement on the exact bar. The Nature Valley and Eat Natural examples discussed here contain peanuts and soya, while their milk and tree-nut information varies by product.
Start with the amount you would eat at one tea break. Use the per-100g panel alongside the per-bar figures when comparing bars of different sizes.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Protein per bar | Read the grams per whole bar and its weight. Nature Valley lists 10.2g protein for Peanut & Chocolate and 10.4g for Salted Caramel Nut, each per 40g bar; TREK lists 9g per Protein Flapjack. | I want to know how much protein the bar I actually eat provides, not just whether its name mentions protein. |
| Whole nutrition panel | Compare sugars, saturated fat, salt and energy per bar, then use per-100g figures for unequal portions. Nature Valley lists 6.8g sugars for its 40g Peanut & Chocolate bar; Eat Natural lists 10.0g sugars and 5.6g saturated fat for its 40g Peanuts & Dark Chocolate bar. | A protein figure matters to me, but I also want the other values for the portion I plan to eat. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Read the exact pack’s ingredients and precautionary allergen statement. Check any vegan or gluten-free wording against the variant you are buying. | My choice needs to fit the ingredients I can eat; a protein claim does not answer that question. |
Protein wording does not tell you how many grams you will get from one bar.
Check protein per whole bar and the bar’s weight before comparing products.
Protein-positioned bars can have different amounts of sugars, saturated fat and energy per serving, as the Nature Valley and Eat Natural product panels show.
Compare the full panel for the portion you would eat, using per-100g values when bar sizes differ.
Vegan or gluten-free wording does not tell you whether a bar contains peanuts or other ingredients you need to avoid.
Read the current pack’s ingredients and precautionary allergen statement for the exact variant.
Alpen identifies several former bar lines as no longer made. An older listing may therefore be a poor basis for choosing a currently sold product.
Confirm the exact product name, pack size and current ingredients and nutrition information before purchase.
These brand references describe particular bars or ranges, not every product bearing the brand name.
Nature Valley lists 10.2g protein per 40g Protein Peanut & Chocolate bar and 10.4g per 40g Protein Salted Caramel Nut bar.
TREK describes its Protein Flapjacks as plant-based and gluten free, with 9g plant protein per flapjack.
Eat Natural’s Peanuts & Dark Chocolate protein bar lists 7.8g protein and 2.4g fibre per 40g bar.
Kellogg's has described Special K Protein Cereal Bars made with plant ingredients including soya and seeds.
Alpen’s product-availability information names several former bar lines that are no longer made.
For a Graze snack, make the individual product rather than the brand name your point of comparison.
These two Nature Valley Protein cereal-bar packs suit a comparison of individually portioned 40g bars for a morning tea break. Check the nutrition and allergen information on the pack you receive, particularly if you are choosing between flavours.
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An individually portioned cereal bar for a tea break; Nature Valley lists 10.4g protein and 4.3g fibre per 40g Salted Caramel Nut bar. It contains peanuts, soya, milk and almond, so check the pack if you avoid these ingredients.
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For a single-bar tea break, Nature Valley lists 10.2g protein, 4.3g fibre and 6.8g sugars per 40g Peanut & Chocolate bar. It contains peanuts, soya and milk; check the pack for its full allergen statement.
Use both: protein per bar tells you what one tea-break portion provides, while the per-100g figure helps compare bars of different sizes. The NHS notes that nutrition information is given per 100g and may also be shown per portion.
Yes. Eat Natural lists 10.0g sugars and 5.6g saturated fat per 40g Peanuts & Dark Chocolate protein bar. Read those figures alongside protein on the exact product’s nutrition panel rather than treating its protein wording as a summary of the whole bar.
Read the ingredients and precautionary allergen statement on the exact current pack. The Food Standards Agency says allergens present in UK prepacked food must be emphasised in its ingredients list; the bars discussed here show why checking by variant matters.