Bars With a Burst

by Rajiv Leventhal
Vitamin Retailer
June 2012

Alternative energy sources, such as energy bars, provide a convenient way to meet an individual’s nutritional needs on an occasional basis, according to www.Fitness.com. A person with a busy lifestyle may decide to eat an energy bar instead of skipping a meal or eating fast food. Energy bars also make an appropriate snack for a long-distance walk, run or bicycle ride to help avoid an energy deficit. Since energy bars do not require utensils, preparation or refrigeration, people can store them in the car, gym bag or carry-on luggage for a quick snack or occasional meal replacement.

Aside from providing needed energy during a long workout, energy bars can suffice as an occasional meal-substitute. Most energy bars contain some vitamins and minerals, and they tend to be more nutritious than a candy bar, a bag of chips or nothing at all. Those that contain nuts, seeds and whole grains offer a healthy dose of protein and fiber.

And sales have been energized as well. According to Nutrition Business Journal, the value of the Sports Nutrition and Weight Loss (SNWL) market was up by nearly $2 billion in 2010, showing a sales increase of nine percent over the previous year. In the past 13 years, the SNWL market has seen a remarkable compound growth rate of 10.2 percent.

Further, a recent Packaged Facts report stated that in the energy/nutrition bar category, new flavor and ingredient introductions along with improvements in taste and mouth-feel have made the future of these products look a lot more interesting. Manufacturers are targeting broader consumer dietary needs, including new nutrient options, and leaving out problem ingredients. Among the functional ingredients that manufacturers are using to vary the nutrition bar formula are CoQ10, L-carnitine, omega-3, resveratrol and vitamin K2. Below are a few examples of energy bars that are available on the market today.

Low-Glycemic Energy Bars
Granola Gourmet (Santa Clarita, CA) 4Real Energy Bars are clinically proven to be low glycemic, and are therefore ideal for people with diabetes, athletes or anybody interested in stable, sustained blood-sugar levels, the company stated. They have been tested on people with type 2 diabetes to determine their glycemic index (GI) value by scientists at GI Labs, who developed the concept of the glycemic index. On a scale where a GI of 70 or more is considered high GI and 55 or less is low GI, Granola Gourmet’s Energy Bars had GI values of only 19 to 25. The bars come in four flavors (Ultimate Berry, Mocha Fudge, Fudge Brownie and Cran-Orange) and are free of wheat and dairy, are very low in sodium, and are kosher and vegan.

Meet the Producer: Jeff Cohen

Foodspring: gateway to food adventure
March 15, 2011

Jeff Cohen
Owner, Granola Gourmet

As a type 2 diabetic, Jeff Cohen was frustrated by a lack of snacks that wouldn’t cause a blood sugar spike but also tasted good. To fill the void, he started Granola Gourmet with his family, creating a line of energy bars that would meet the needs of diabetics, as well as athletes and health-conscious consumers. He made each bar with 100 percent natural and wholesome ingredients, all with low glycemic impact so they convert to sugar more slowly

What began in his kitchen at home quickly turned into a hit. His teenagers started getting requests for new flavors from their friends; soon after, he began selling to caterers on television show and movie sets. Designed to satisfy a sweet tooth, the bars have no refined sugar nor the fat and sodium content of other popular protein and energy bars. They are available in flavors like Ultimate Berry, Mocha Fudge, Chocolate Espresso and Spiced Orange Cranberry. They provide such an energy boost that a group of 18 climbers brought Granola Gourmet energy bars to eat for their meals and snacks during an eight-day climb to the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro. To learn more about his business, look for Cohen on ABC’s Shark Tank, which will air later this year.

 

Cohen shared more of his story with us:


How did you get involved with supporting the Mt. Kilimanjaro trek?
I think we all have an athlete within, and when I went on my journey to make a great-tasting low-glycemic snack I knew it would appeal to all types of athletes, from casual walkers to marathon runners and those adventurous enough to climb the 19,298 feet of Mt. Kilimanjaro. In our humble beginnings making bars for customers at local farmers markets and selling to caterers, I had no idea people would rely on our product for sustenance and energy to make the huge climb. We were approached by a local group out of Santa Clarita, Calif., made up of committed hikers that knew they needed our product for the journey. We were excited to be able to participate in the effort that took place more than 10,000 miles away.

Did the hikers eat your granola bars at the summit?
They ate the bars all the way up the mountain and commented that the guides loved the bars as well. They took pictures of our sign at the top. Definitely one of the high points in our company!

What is the most challenging or satisfying part of your job?
The most satisfying part of our job is when we attend the American Diabetes Expo every year in Los Angeles. Diabetics and their families swarm our booth and find our healthy diabetic-friendly bars taste great. It’s particularly rewarding to see my two teenage sons talking to the attendees about how their diabetic father came up with a product that they love. We can never stock enough product for the show and sell out every year.

Do you have a favorite flavor from your line?
I love the fruit flavors but can finally enjoy the chocolate ones without blood sugar concerns. My favorite is the Chocolate Espresso in our original recipe line and Ultimate Mocha Fudge from our new line of individually wrapped bars. They’re great in the morning when I need to rush out of the house without my cup of coffee.

If someone could shadow you for one day at your job, what would surprise that person most?
How much time I spend talking with people. I’m sharing my experiences for hours every day. Thank goodness I have an unlimited cell phone plan!

When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
My dad was a corporate guy who was very successful. He taught us that no matter what you did, do it for others. Today I know that the more people I can help, the more successful I will be. I guess I always wanted to be an entrepreneur, whether that was working for others or myself, as I do today.

Aside from your products, what three food items can you always find in your kitchen?
You can always find apples, lemons from our tree, and although it’s not technically food, we make some great meals in our wok.

MetroNow: Granola Gourmet

Metro Source
July 7, 2012

Healthy, kosher and vegan, Granola Gourmet energy bars have become our new favorite snack.  Using tasty organic ingredients, Jeff Cohen created a special recipe that does not cause a blood sugar spike. The treats are ideal for athletes and healthy consumers, alike. Flavors include brownie and berry. However, the Metro Source staff loves the orange-cran best!

Tips for healthy snacking

by Cary Castagna
Edmonton Sun
February 21, 2010

With 2011 New Year’s resolutions looming on the horizon, Granola Gourmet offers the following tips for healthy snacking (along with a shameless plug for its energy bars):

  • Look for snacks to satisfy your children’s sweet tooth while avoiding the high fat, sugar and sodium content of the snack foods your kids are tempted to eat.
  • Athletes who want to refuel and eat snacks that satisfy hunger and make them feel satiated longer, should look for snacks that contain low glycemic impact carbs and are low in sugar.
  • Instead of sugary cereals, look for foods made with 100% natural ingredients, some of the healthiest options are made with at least 25% of ingredients such as whole grains in addition to Omega-3′s.
  • If you don’t have time to stop for a meal, look for healthy snacks that are portion-controlled and individually packaged.
  • Those with special dietary requirements looking for snacks that are free of wheat, dairy, very low sodium, kosher and vegan can pick up a tasty and healthy Granola Gourmet energy bar that fits all of those dietary needs and is ready to grab for on the go.

About Granola Gourmet

Founded by a diabetic and his family, Granola Gourmet™ Energy bars are made with 100% natural and wholesome ingredients. They have no wheat, no dairy and are very low in sodium. A portion of each purchase goes to help fight diabetes.

Products For Diabetics Finally Taste Good

by Sheldon Baker
NutraInk
November 19, 2010

 

Products for Diabetics Finally Taste Good

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there are over 23 million diabetics in the U.S., and another 40 million people with pre-diabetes and other blood sugar issues. The CDC projects that 1 in 3 people could have diabetes by the year 2050.

Jeff Cohen has been a diabetic since 1993. He was frustrated while trying to find a snack that didn’t cause a blood sugar spike and also tasted good. He finally decided to create his own, and his company Granola Gourmet was born to solve the problem.

From humble beginnings in his family kitchen, the meal replacement bars were made in small batches using organic ingredients and became a weekly family tradition. His teenage boys began getting requests for new flavors from their friends. The cast and crew of Hollywood television shows from The Ellen Show, The Mentalist, Entourage and others on the Warner Bros. lot and CBS-TV began buying the bars. Soon they became the healthiest product on the Craft Services table catering to the motion picture industry. And Granola Gourmet became a local family-owned business success.

“…you’ll find our energy bar products priced the same or less than many of the bars that are not healthy…”

Jeff Cohen, Founder
Granola Gourmet

Cohen’s company has just introduced what it calls its Ultimate line of individually wrapped energy bars replying to consumer and grocer requests for natural portable snack items. The individually wrapped bars also respond to consumer demand for 100% natural grab-and-go snacks that don’t spike blood sugar. Made entirely in the U.S., the bars come in four flavors.

According to Cohen, as demand for diabetic food items becomes mainstream, many national retail and grocery store chains are expanding their healthy and natural product lines.

“While Granola Gourmet Ultimate Energy Bars are designed to satisfy your sweet tooth, the bars do not have refined sugar or the fat and sodium content of other popular protein and energy bars in its formulation,” explains Cohen.

“As a Type 2 diabetic, I wanted to create a product that is healthy, tasty and filling that could meet the needs of diabetics, as well as athletes and health conscious consumers.”

But is healthy food too expensive?

“Not anymore,” says Cohen. “Organic ingredients have come way down in price. We are seeing small differences in the cost of many of the organic ingredients we acquire today. In our case, you’ll find our energy bar products priced the same or less than many of the bars that are not healthy,” Cohen notes.

This is the first time consumers will have the opportunity to purchase Granola Gourmet’s individually wrapped bars or in a caddy of 10. Ultimate Berry with blueberries, Ultimate Fudge Brownie with a nutty texture, Ultimate Mocha Fudge with a chocolaty base and touch of coffee flavor and aroma and Ultimate Cran-Orange make up the Ultimate selection.

Granola Gourmet bars contains 10-12g whole grains and 530-590mg of omega-3. For those with other dietary requirements, the bars are free of wheat and dairy, low in sodium, and are kosher and vegan.

Santa Clarita, CA-based Granola Gourmet also uses Low Glycemic Index ingredients. Low Glycemic foods provide longer periods of sustained energy, hunger relief and reduces the risk of experiencing blood sugar spikes. As a result, Granola Gourmet bars convert to sugar more slowly.

In Northern California, Safeway and Vons are carrying the products. The nationwide grocery chain launch is supported by a giveaway rebate offer that enables customers to receive free Granola Gourmet Energy Bars in exchange for proof of purchase. For more information about Granola Gourmet visit www.granolagourmet.com.

In a sea of energy bars, customers have found Granola Gourmet products are 100% natural and formulated with several organic ingredients.

“When I think about our brand two words come to mind, healthy and delicious,” says Cohen. “When Whole Foods in Southern California began carrying our product line I knew we had something and decided to put extra effort into the business. Today, we are expanding and excited about the future,” Cohen says, with a big smile.

Products for diabetics finally taste good

by Sheldon Baker
examiner.com
November 19, 2010

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), there are over 23 million diabetics in the U.S., and another 40 million people with pre-diabetes and other blood sugar issues. The CDC projects that 1 in 3 people could have diabetes by the year 2050.

Jeff Cohen has been a diabetic since 1993. He was frustrated while trying to find a snack that didn’t cause a blood sugar spike and also tasted good. He finally decided to create his own, and his company Granola Gourmet was born to solve the problem.

From humble beginnings in his family kitchen, the meal replacement bars were made in small batches using many organic ingredients and became a weekly family tradition. His teenage boys began getting requests for new flavors from their friends. The cast and crew of Hollywood television shows from The Ellen ShowThe MentalistEntourage and others on the Warner Bros. lot and CBS-TV began buying the bars. Soon they became the healthiest product on the Craft Services table catering to the motion picture industry. And Granola Gourmet became a local family-owned business success.

Cohen’s company has just introduced what it calls its Ultimate line of individually wrapped energy bars replying to consumer and grocer requests for natural portable snack items. The individually wrapped bars are also responding to consumer demand for 100% natural grab-and-go snacks that don’t spike blood sugar. Made entirely in the U.S., the bars come in four flavors.

According to Cohen, as demand for diabetic food items becomes mainstream, many national retail and grocery store chains are expanding their healthy and natural product lines.

“While Granola Gourmet Ultimate Energy Bars are designed to satisfy your sweet tooth, the bars do not have refined sugar or the fat and sodium content of other popular protein and energy bars in its formulation,” explains Cohen.

“As a Type 2 diabetic, I wanted to create a product that is healthy, tasty and filling that could meet the needs of diabetics, as well as athletes and health conscious consumers,” Cohen added.

This is the first time consumers will have the opportunity to purchase Granola Gourmet’s individually wrapped bars that also come in a caddy of 10. Ultimate Berry with blueberries, Ultimate Fudge Brownie with a nutty texture, Ultimate Mocha Fudge with a chocolaty base and touch of coffee flavor and aroma and Ultimate Cran-Orange make up the Ultimate selection.

Granola Gourmet bars contains 10-12g whole grains and 530-590mg of omega-3. For those with other dietary requirements, the bars are free of wheat and dairy, low in sodium, and are kosher and vegan.

Santa Clarita, CA-based Granola Gourmet also uses Low Glycemic Index ingredients. Low Glycemic foods provide longer periods of sustained energy, hunger relief and reduces the risk of experiencing blood sugar spikes. As a result, Granola Gourmet bars convert to sugar more slowly.

In California, SafewayVonsPavilions and Whole Foods are some of the stores carrying the products. The nationwide grocery chain launch is supported by a giveaway rebate offer that enables customers to receive free Granola Gourmet Energy Bars in exchange for proof of purchase. For more information about Granola Gourmet visit www.granolagourmet.com.

Alternative Energy: SCV man finds success with granola bars

by Joshua Premako
Santa Clarita Valley Signal
September 14, 2009

Jeff Cohen didn’t intend to go into the business of producing granola bars. He was simply looking for something to snack on.

But in nearly three years, Cohen has gone from whipping up snacks to helming Granola Gourmet, a company that produces low-glycemic energy bars.

Cohen, 47, was diagnosed with diabetes about 15 years ago.

One of the biggest feathers in the cap of the Stevenson Ranch resident has been having 24 Whole Foods Markets in Southern California carry his bars.

“My goal is to make Granola Gourmet a national brand that’s widely accepted by everybody, and just happens to be good for you,” Cohen said.

Cohen’s is a story with simple beginnings – he got the idea while his wife was baking muffins.

It was late 2006 and, Cohen said, “I was looking for a snack that tasted good but wouldn’t cause my blood sugar to spike.”

One of his sons got the ball rolling, he said, by urging Cohen to come up with something he’d like that his father could eat.

“I’m not a cook. I don’t know the first thing about food,” Cohen said.

As he researched the glycemic index, Cohen said, he eventually settled on trying out granola bars.

He started preparing more and more batches, as he found his sons were frequently taking them to school to share with friends.

In spring 2008, he began selling his energy bars at the weekly farmers’ market held in downtown Newhall.

“One thing led to another,” he said Monday, standing next to shelves full of colorfully packaged energy bars in Valencia’s Whole Foods store. “It’s been a pretty interesting ride.”

When Cohen started setting up shop at the farmers’ market, he was making about 1,000 bars a month.

Now, he said, Granola Gourmet is producing about 20,000 bars monthly.

The bars are available in four flavors: Spiced orange cranberry, very berry, brownie and chocolate espresso.

The base ingredients in each bar are organic oats, blue agave, flax and sunflower seeds, almonds and honey.

A key to success, Cohen said, has been maintaining a broad appeal, reflected in his motto: “Energy bars for athletes, diabetics and you.”

Gaining the support of Whole Foods was a matter of finding someone interested in the product, which Cohen said was hard work.

The first store to start carrying Granola Gourmet bars was the Whole Foods on Arroyo Parkway in Pasadena. Within two weeks, 10 more stores added the bars, with another 10 over the following month.

Now, Cohen is selling Granola Gourmet bars in 24 Whole Foods markets, through www.Amazon.com and at www.granolagourmet.com, and he said he is negotiating a deal with a major California grocery store chain.

In a year, Cohen said he’d like to be on track to becoming a million-dollar-a-year business.

With Granola Gourmet, Cohen came up with more than a solution for snack-time cravings.

“These are the granola bars that saved my life,” he said.

Granola Gourmet designs diabetic-safe energy bar

Dee Long
examiner.com
May 20, 2009

We enjoyed reading Mary Tyler Moore’s latest autobiography, ” Growing Up Again: Life, Loves, and Oh Yeah, Diabetes” (www.amazon.com) and were amazed to discover the amount of discipline and strategy that goes into choosing when and what to eat when you are diabetic.

A nice example of synchronicity, then, to discover Santa Clarita-based Granola Gourmet (www.granolagourmet.com), a company that’s created “Energy Bars for Athletes, Diabetics and YOU”.

Sweetened with raw organic blue agave and honey, four varieties of bars are offered: brownie, chocolate espresso, spiced orange cranberry (pictured above) and very berry. The bars we sampled were sweet, chewy and very satisfying and although we don’t need them for dietary reasons, we’d rather opt for a Granola Gourmet bar than any of the other packaged energy bars currently on the market. Granola Gourmet Energy Bars contain antioxidants, omega 3′s and fiber and are chock full of such natural healthy ingredients as organic oats, dried cranberries, olive oil, almonds and cinnamon.

Grab a four-pack to keep handy in the car during the summer when traveling with the kids. Granola Gourmet Energy Bars are great for hiking and camping. Keep a carton in your desk drawer to satisfy those 3 o’clock munchie cravings rather than heading to a vending machine. And a portion of all sales supports the American Diabetes Association.

Until our next food find…may all your food finds be fabulous!

What else is new in health & fitness?

Torrance Daily Breeze
January 29, 2009

What is it:  A line with low-sugar granola bars invented by local entrepreneur Jeff Cohen, a diabetic who created them as a healthy way to deal with his own sugar cravings.

Who might want it: Diabetics, health nuts, athletes and moms looking for healthy kid-friendly snacks.

Where to buy it: Southern Calif. Whole Foods stores or www.granolagourmet.com.