Opinion: Matt Hunt
Matt Hunt, founder of The Protein Ball Co, weighs in on the great snack debate and argues that not all processing is the enemy.
You can’t open a newspaper or scroll through LinkedIn these days without seeing someone slamming ultra-processed foods (UPFs). Joe Wicks lit the bonfire, ably abetted by the thought-provoking Ultra-Processed People book written by Chris van Tulleken, prompting a flurry of heated discussions — and some lively debate from leading voices within the protein bar fraternity; a lively exchange of views that quickly spilled far beyond the nutrition world.
My first reaction is that this debate is no bad thing. Far too many of us are far too blasé about what we’re consuming, taking for granted the gushing ‘snake oil salesman’ patter we read on pack. Seasoned snackers need to think long and hard about what they’re eating and about the reasons for some of the curious sounding ingredients they might find tucked away on the back-of-packs of their grazing choices.
But here’s the thing, in the rush to demonize everything processed, we risk missing out on the bigger picture: namely, not all processing is evil. Sometimes it’s about making good ingredients safer, more accessible, or dare I suggest more nutritious. The problem isn’t so much ‘processing’ it’s what you’re processing and the thinking behind one’s actions.
At The Protein Ball Co, we’ve always sat proudly on the clean, natural side of the fence. We’re not purists or finger-waggers, but we do believe that simplicity rules and that there’s so much scope to make snacks from real food and ingredients versus chemistry set labs. Our mantra has always been one of seeking out honest, instantly recognizable ingredients you can pronounce: nuts, seeds, fibres, nut butters, proteins and freeze-dried fruits. Nothing unnecessary, nothing fake, no fillers — just proud, uncomplicated heroes from nature’s larder.
When we started out just over a decade ago, the protein snack aisle was full of dense, sugar-laden bars with ingredient lists that read like a NASA experiment. Fast forward to now, and things haven’t moved as many of us would have hoped. Too many so-called ‘healthy’ snack icons still hide behind the same tired ultra-processed tricks, using sweeteners, sugars, emulsifiers, humectants and gums that give short-term sweetness whilst fuelling long-term confusion. It’s the classic ‘smoke and mirrors’ of health marketing: low sugar and a list of 20+ ingredients that you don’t know, with no explanation of why they’ve been included.
“In the rush to demonize everything processed, we risk missing out on the bigger picture: namely, not all processing is evil.”
Our mission from day one has been to cut through the B.S. Food should be simple, satisfying and as close to its natural state as possible. To this day our priorities remain using fewer ingredients and prioritizing balance, whilst accommodating new GLP-1-friendly, protein-rich grazing opportunities that increasingly mirror modern life.
Whether you’re an early-morning gym-goer, a busy commuter or a perimenopausal woman trying to make smarter food choices, I believe it’s important for brand loyalists to know exactly what they’re eating and why it’s good for them.
To us brand growth is only rewarding if one stays true to one’s core values. Our new Ballsy by Nature strapline isn’t a throwaway tagline; it’s how we think. Honest ingredients meet appealing flavour profiles. Thankfully growing numbers of food retailers are now making a point of flying the flag for real, authentic, small-batch, mission-driven brands. The indie sector is particularly accomplished when it comes to talking directly to customers who care about what’s in their food, where it’s made and who’s behind it.
To my way of thinking there’s still a lot of misinformation out there. There’s also real impetus behind challenging the status quo. I tend to lean towards the natural side of the fence; I mean, there are countless choices to explore, but if the brand’s promoting a go-natural agenda then I am jumping in. ’Natural’ shouldn’t be a lazy marketing buzzword. It should just mean real food, made by real people who care about what they do.
For us being Ballsy by Nature isn’t about shouting louder. It’s about standing for something that actually matters, otherwise what’s the point?
By Matt Hunt, The Protein Ball Co