Monday 17 September 2012

Pom Bears go Dairy Free!

OK, so this won't be news to those of you who have joined us on Facebook or Twitter, but  as far as I'm concerned, it's still worth celebrating!

Beloved of kiddies - the Original Pom Bears!

It would be hard to find a child to whom these cheeky little bears wouldn't appeal. Baby is no exception. Unfortunately they seemed to be out of bounds - until quite recently, that is!

It was the end of summer term party, at a local Baby and Toddler group, when I got my first inkling that they might be OK. I went prepared for the worst, as usual - knowing that previously they had provided treats for the children, at the end of term. 

Sighing inwardly, at the sight of Pom Bears on the table, I had to prevent Baby from helping herself (just like all the other children) when one of the organisers told me she should be fine. Unable to believe what I was hearing, I examined the packet that she gave me, and sure enough, no mention of milk! 'Funny!' I thought, 'I'm sure that they had milk in them.'

Confusion reigned on Face Book, when I shared the news, so, in the interests of clarity, I emailed the manufacturers and was pleasantly surprised by their swift and courteous response, which was as follows:

The Pom-Bear base recipe was changed in December 2011 to remove the milk content. Since then Pom-Bear Original (ready salted) no longer contains milk. However, the flavoured versions of Pom-Bear such as Cheese + Onion still contain milk which is in the seasonings used.
During the changeover period some of the packaging which still had the previous allergy warning on has been used in conjunction with packaging featuring the new declaration. I apologise for the confusion and concern this may have caused.
It is difficult to say when all the new packaging will be into the system due to stocks held in customers’ warehouses. Also Pom-Bear has a 6 months shelf life so it is feasible that some packs with the milk recipe could still be on sale till June.
If the pack you have does not declare the milk allergen then it is safe to eat for those with a milk allergy otherwise I recommend caution and avoid eating the product.

Yippee! 

So the news is, yes! The Ready Salted flavoured Pom Bears are dairy free - just don't be tempted to eat the other flavours!! 

For those of you with other dietary restrictions to consider, the packet states that they are gluten free but that they contain soya. However, this is in the form of lecithin - which, as I understand it, is safe for most of us who can't usually tolerate soya, but do, of course, check with your medical advisor, if you're unsure.

The ingredients list (ready salted) is as follows:

Potato Powder
Sunflower Oil
Potato Starch
Modified Starch
Salt (0.6g per 100g)
Sugar
Yeast Extract
Soya Lecithin
Spice

Isn't it great to know that although manufacturers can (and do) change products' ingredients for the worse, they can also change them for the better? Let's hope more take note of this more positive example and follow the lead!

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3 comments:

  1. Hi! How do you feel about advertisements put on blogging resources?

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    Replies
    1. Sorry I'm not sure what you mean, could you be more specific?

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    2. If you mean in reference to this past, it's not advertising. I'm highlighting a product that may be of interest to followers of this blog. Any product I highlight, is only ever highlighted for that reason. I am not paid for this blog, by anyone, in any way whatsoever. I've not picked up anything along the way except a free recipe book (unsolicited). In fact, I've turned products down, in the interests of maintaining my integrity as a blogger. I don't mind giving free publicity to dairy free products. It's in our interests that they prosper and do well, because then they may well be able to expand their range, which will benefit all of us.

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