Review: Baby Mum-Mum First Rice Rusks Vegetable

Let's review- Baby Mum-Mum First Rice Rusks

Now this is a product marketed at babies! So we aren't going to worry about the fibre for this one- which is definitely something we are looking at more for products for our toddlers and kids.

What is in it?

Rice flour (68%), potato starch (19.1%), apple juice concentrate (11.5%), kale powder (0.4%), carrot powder (0.3%), cabbage powder (0.3%), spinach powder (0.25%), ferrous fumarate (0.15%).

Allergens

CONTAINS: Nil- free from common allergens and also made in a nut free facility

​Cost: $3.85 per 36g packet ($10.69 per 100g)

What we like:

• Sodium within the recommended guidelines- The sodium is 17mg per 100g and we are aiming for less than 400mg per 100g. There is no added salt in this product too. 
• Total Fat- is 0.7g per 100g which is much lower than the recommended 10g or less per 100g. The Saturated Fat is also 0.3g per 100g and we want it below 3g. 
• Sugar- it has 8.8g per 100g. We ideally want less than 15g to keep it in the low to moderate range (less than 5g per 100g is low and less than 15g is moderate). 
• Iron- They are fortified with iron! Babies have really high iron needs and it can be tricky to meet them!
• Texture- texture wise these are pretty good for babies learning to bite and chew. They dissolve easily when they are in the mouth. You can also spread something on top like mashed pumpkin, nut butter or yoghurt to help them dissolve faster/are even easier to eat. This also boost the nutrition! 

What we like less:

• Sweetened with fruit juice-Although the sugar content meets the guidelines for a lower/moderate sugar product it is sweetened with fruit juice. In fact, it is the third ingredient in these (meaning that it is the main ingredient after rice flour and potato starch). Compared to other rusks on the market this brands sugar content is almost double.
• They are also meant to be vegetable so, why do they need fruit juice in there at all? They have almost NO vegetables in them. Each rusk only has 0.005g of spinach! You don't get any health benefit from the vegetables in these rusk and you also aren't exposing babies to new flavours. Putting vegetables in them in such small amounts feels a little sneaky- like they are trying to convince parents they are "healthy"....but really its all apple, rice and potato!
• The cost- these are expensive for what is essentially rice and some vegetable powders. 
• They aren't very nutritious- as they are mainly rice flour, potato starch and juice, they don't make a great snack on their own for babies. 

The Take Home: 

As far as rusks go, these are okay, but rusks aren't a particularly great snack for babies because they aren't nutrient dense. They don't eat a huge amount in the early days and a rusk is likely to fill them up without exposing them to different flavours and textures or help to meet their high nutrition needs.

BUT..... rusks like this can make a great vessel for left over purees, dips and spreads.  They are also allergen free and fortified with iron- so not all bad news here. These aren't something we would be offering babies regularly but we appreciate they can make a convenient snack to chuck in the nappy bag but we suggest trying to add something to them!

If you want to learn how to review biscuits and crackers yourself, check out our new resource on 'Choosing Biscuits and Crackers' (you can check it out here)!