Lunch buyers looking for a reduced-fat claim
You want an individual pack and a stated fat comparison, rather than relying on words such as ‘baked’ or ‘lightly salted’ alone.
Who is this for?
A crisp that fits into a portable lunch still needs to meet your preferences for portion size, nutrition information and ingredients.
Shoppers comparing nutrition labels
You want to see fat and salt per 100g as well as the values for the pack or serving you expect to eat. Those amounts can differ between products.
Shoppers checking dietary suitability
You need the ingredient, allergen and suitability statements for the exact flavour. A reduced-fat claim does not answer those questions.
What should you check?
Start with the fat comparison, then check the nutrition panel for both a common 100g basis and the amount you will eat at lunch.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Reduced-fat claim | Read what the manufacturer compares the crisp with, then check total fat per 100g. Walkers UK states that Oven Baked Sea Salt has 50% less fat than regular potato crisps; Tyrrells states that its lentil crisps have 30% less fat than standard potato crisps on average. | I want a stated comparison, not a product name that merely sounds lower in fat. |
| Fat and portion | Compare per-100g figures before comparing portions. Walkers UK lists 13g fat per 100g and 2.8g per 22g Oven Baked Sea Salt pack; Tyrrells lists 19g per 100g and 5.7g per stated 30g Sweet Chilli & Red Pepper serving. | For lunch, the amount I expect to eat matters as well as the figure used to compare products. |
| Salt and saturates | Read salt and saturated fat separately from total fat, both per 100g and per pack or serving where shown. GOV.UK explains that traffic-light labels, where present, show levels of fat, saturates, sugars and salt. | A reduced-fat claim does not tell me the salt or saturated fat content of my chosen flavour. |
| Ingredients and allergens | Check the current declaration for the exact flavour and pack, including ‘may contain’ statements. Do not use a reduced-fat claim as a substitute for an ingredient check. | If an ingredient or allergen affects my choice, I need the information for the product I am buying. |
| Lunch format | Check whether the listing is an individual pack, a multipack of smaller bags or a larger sharing bag. Compare the stated serving with the amount you intend to take. | I may prefer a ready-to-pack bag, or a larger bag that I can divide myself. |
Common buying mistakes
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Treating ‘reduced fat’ as ‘low fat’
A reduction compares one product with another. NHS food-label guidance uses 3g fat or less per 100g as its low-fat criterion; Walkers Oven Baked Sea Salt lists 13g and Tyrrells Sweet Chilli & Red Pepper Lentil Crisps list 19g per 100g.
Read both the manufacturer’s comparator and the per-100g figure rather than treating the two descriptions as interchangeable.
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Comparing unequal portions
Walkers UK lists 2.8g fat per 22g Oven Baked Sea Salt pack, while Tyrrells lists 5.7g per stated 30g Sweet Chilli & Red Pepper serving. The portion sizes differ.
Use per-100g values to compare the products, then use the pack or serving values to assess the amount you expect to eat.
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Reading a flavour or cooking description as a fat claim
‘Lightly salted’ refers to seasoning, not fat. KETTLE Chips lists 29.5g fat per 100g for Lightly Salted, according to its product information.
Look for an explicit fat comparison and read the nutrition panel instead of judging fat content from a name such as ‘lightly salted’ or ‘hand-cooked’.
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Skipping the flavour-specific allergen check
Fat content does not establish dietary suitability. Walkers UK’s Oven Baked Sea Salt information includes a ‘may contain’ statement covering several allergens.
Check the current pack for the exact flavour, particularly if you need to avoid an ingredient or allergen.
Brands and relevant ranges
These product lines offer different claims, nutrition figures and pack formats; a brand name alone does not establish whether a particular crisp is reduced in fat.
Walkers
Walkers UK states that Oven Baked Sea Salt has 50% less fat than regular potato crisps. Its nutrition information covers an individual 22g pack.
- The Sea Salt product lists 13g fat per 100g and 2.8g per 22g pack.
- That per-100g figure exceeds the NHS low-fat criterion of 3g or less. Check the current pack’s ‘may contain’ statement.
Tyrrells
Tyrrells states that its Lentil Crisps have 30% less fat than standard potato crisps on average.
- Sweet Chilli & Red Pepper lists 19g fat per 100g and 5.7g per stated 30g serving, according to Tyrrells.
- Its stated serving is larger than the 22g Walkers Oven Baked Sea Salt pack, so compare the per-100g panels as well as portions.
KETTLE Chips
KETTLE Lightly Salted is a hand-cooked crisp; ‘Lightly Salted’ describes its seasoning rather than a fat comparison.
- KETTLE Chips states that this product is suitable for vegans and vegetarians and is gluten-free.
- It lists 29.5g fat per 100g. Check the pack format if you need an individual lunch portion.
Seabrook
Seabrook Sea Salted comes in a 31.8g bag, a format to consider when choosing a portion for lunch.
- Seabrook states that Sea Salted is gluten-free and suitable for vegetarians and vegans.
- Its nutrition information lists 30.4g fat per 100g; the bag format does not itself make it a reduced-fat crisp.
McCoy's
McCoy's Salted is a regular ridged crisp to compare by its nutrition panel rather than by pack size or texture.
- McCoy's publishes per-100g nutrition information for the Salted product.
- It lists 32g fat per 100g and says the product may contain milk, soya, gluten and mustard.
REAL Hand Cooked Crisps
REAL Roast Ox is offered in a 35g bag as well as a 150g bag, according to REAL Hand Cooked Crisps.
- The 35g format gives shoppers a smaller pack option.
- Roast Ox lists 25.7g fat per 100g. Check its ingredients and allergen information for this flavour.
Joybuy product options
These options include Walkers Oven Baked multipacks for portable lunches, other crisp formats and a lentil cake snack. Compare each exact flavour’s label before deciding whether it meets your reduced-fat and portion preferences.
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Walkers Oven Baked Variety Pack Crisps 6 x 22g
The six individual packs can be taken separately for lunch. Joybuy’s product information states a 50% less-fat comparison with regular potato crisps; check the nutrition and allergen details for each flavour in the variety pack.
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Walkers Oven Baked Cheese & Onion Crisps Flavour 6 x 22g
This multipack contains six 22g bags for separate lunches. Check the Cheese & Onion pack’s own fat, salt and allergen information rather than applying figures from another Oven Baked flavour.
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Lay's 3 Can Pack 90g*3 — Original, Cucumber & Lime
The three 90g cans offer different flavours across multiple lunches. If you plan to eat less than a can at a time, check the serving information and the ingredients for each flavour.
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PopChips Sour Cream & Onion 85g
For an 85g bag, compare the per-100g panel with the portion you intend to take for lunch. Check the current Sour Cream & Onion ingredient and allergen information as well as any fat comparison on the pack.
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Kallo Protein Packed Lentil Cakes 100g
These are lentil cakes rather than a conventional bag of crisps, so check whether that format suits the lunch you are planning. Use the 100g pack’s nutrition and ingredient information for this product, rather than figures for lentil crisps from another brand.
Questions about reduced-fat crisps
Does ‘reduced fat’ mean crisps are low in fat?
No. ‘Reduced fat’ compares a product with another product or group, while NHS food-label guidance describes 3g fat or less per 100g as low in fat. Walkers Oven Baked Sea Salt lists 13g per 100g and Tyrrells Sweet Chilli & Red Pepper Lentil Crisps list 19g per 100g, despite their manufacturers’ reduced-fat comparisons.
Should I compare crisps per 100g or per pack?
Use both: per 100g provides a common basis for comparing products, while the pack or serving shows the amount relevant to your lunch. NHS guidance notes that labels may give portion values as well as per-100g values; check whether the stated portion is the amount you expect to eat.
Does a reduced-fat claim tell me anything about salt?
No. Read salt separately on the nutrition panel for the exact flavour and portion. GOV.UK explains that traffic-light labels, where present, show levels of salt alongside fat, saturates and sugars.
Are reduced-fat crisps suitable for vegetarian, vegan or allergy-aware lunches?
Check the exact flavour’s current pack: a fat claim does not establish its ingredients or allergen suitability. Walkers UK states that Oven Baked Sea Salt is suitable for vegetarians but also lists several possible allergens in its ‘may contain’ statement.