UnReal candy was founded in 2010 by two brothers, Nicky and Kris, who had distinct memories of their parents disliking their favorite chocolate as children. Later in adulthood, the two young men sought out to remake their favorite candies without all the unhealthy ingredients. After hundreds of recipes, they established products that they claimed were healthier than generic candies. With the multitude of health food fads gaining popularity these days, I decided to see: is UnReal candy actually healthy for you?
The Products:
UnReal offers 6 products: Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, Dark Chocolate Almond Butter Cups, Crispy Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, Milk Chocolate Gems, Dark Chocolate Peanut Gems, and Dark Chocolate Crispy Quinoa Gems. All of the products are non-GMO verified, have fair trade and sustainable ingredients, and have no artificial ingredients. While UnReal is not organic certified, many of its products have organic ingredients. All of the products have no gluten-containing ingredients and all the cups are gluten-free certified, but the gems are made in a facility that manufactures products containing gluten. UnReal products are also all free of soy ingredients and are certified Kosher. In addition, the dark chocolate candies are vegan.
The Ingredients:
So are these UnReal products healthier than generic competitors like Reese’s and M&M’s? Not really. UnReal’s Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cup has 80 calories, 6 grams of fat, 5 grams of sugar, and 1 gram of protein, while a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup has 87 calories, 5 grams of fat, 8 grams of sugar, and 1.7 grams of protein. UnReal’s Milk Chocolate Gems have 160 calories, 8 grams of fat, 17 grams of sugar, and 3 grams of protein per serving, while traditional M&M’s have 170 calories, 7.1 grams of fat, 21.3 grams of sugar, and 1.4 grams of protein per serving. Overall, there’s no significant calorie difference and the normal candy bars actually have less fat than UnReal products. If you’re trying to reduce your sugar intake, you could try out UnReal candy, but it won’t make much of a difference.
Is UnReal candy actually healthy for you? While UnReal may not be healthier than all the generic candy on the market, their products are better for the world. With fair trade and sustainable ingredients and no preservatives, UnReal is supporting a healthy environment (but maybe not so much a healthy diet).