New Product Review:

LiveActive Cereals

Reviewed by Mr Breakfast on 3/16/2008

I tried both varieties of this cereal: Mixed Berry Crunch and Nut Harvest Crunch.

Beneath the title of these cereals, the boxes read, "for digestive health... with 3 grams of prebiotic fiber per serving." Prebiotic fiber is a special kind of non-digestable fiber that serves as a food source for probiotic bacteria (or good bacteria) in your body. The possible health benefit of prebiotic fiber is that it may help good bacteria flourish, thus fighting off illness-causing bad bacteria.

When I bought these cereals, I had a basic idea about prebiotics and probiotics, in as much as I knew they related to bacteria. The title of the cereal also struck me as having a relationship to bacteria... LiveActive. I know that you're supposed to read that as "live active" (ie. be active), but my first read was "live active" as in "live (alive) active bacteria cultures".

Despite the possible health benefits, I have to admit being slightly put off by the title. I would never buy a cereal called "Bacteria Flakes" or "Streptococcus Puffs". A person's first inclination is that bacteria is bad. A bowl of anything bacteria-related is a little daunting. I really didn't know what to expect from these cereals.

Despite all the scientific promotion on the box, there's nothing unusual when it comes to the taste and appearance of the actual cereals. The flakes are reminiscent of Wheaties flakes with a bit more thickness and substance. The "lightly sweetened crunchy clusters" actually stay moderately crunchy in milk and they're large enough to make an impact on the texture of the cereal.

In a comparison of the two varieties, Nut Harvest Crunch dominated over Mixed Berry Crunch. The nuts (almonds, pecan and walnuts) are noticeable in every bite and add a earthy, nutty goodness that works well with the lightly-sweetened flakes and clusters.

The Mix Berry Crunch variety didn't work as well. I was surprised how little flavor the dried cranberries and blueberries contributed. For one thing, the blueberry pieces are very small. I went through an entire bowl, encountering very few blueberries... only to find that they'd all sunk to the bottom. If you like blueberries, you might like the last spoonful of this cereal. The cranberries, while ever-present, add more texture than taste to this variety.

I'm giving this cereal a score of 6 out of 7 golden eggs solely based on the Nut Harvest Crunch variety and we'll just forget about the forgettable Mixed Berry Crunch.

All in all, Nut Harvest Crunch Live Active is a very good cereal.

The $2.49 price reflects a 2 boxes for $4.98 sale price.

The price we paid: $2.49