Nature Valley Crunchy Oats 'N Honey Granola Bars
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Primal Power Ancestral Fuel Bar Primal Power · 12 pack View on Amazon · $42.99 See all Snack Bars, ranked At a glance
Summary
Nature Valley Crunchy Oats 'N Honey scores 16/100. America's #1 granola bar hides behind a 'nature' brand name while delivering canola/sunflower seed oils, sugar as the second ingredient, brown sugar syrup, soy lecithin, and vague natural flavor. Only 2g protein per bar with 12g sugar. The green packaging and mountain imagery is textbook health-washing — this is a cookie marketed as a health food. This is the Crunchy variety.
Contaminants 9
Source: Anresco Laboratories (glyphosate) and Consumer Reports, Contaminants in Kids' Snacks, August 2026 (all other rows)
Glyphosate Detected High
Detected at a high level — at or above health-based exposure limits. Regular exposure at this level is a genuine health concern. Glyphosate is classified as a probable human carcinogen by IARC.
EWG 2019 oat-based snack bar testing and Food Democracy Now / The Detox Project (Anresco Laboratories, FDA-registered, LC-MS/MS) confirmed positive for glyphosate.
Acrylamide 240 ppb (10.1 mcg per 42 g serving) High
One serving carries about 50 times California's Prop 65 no-significant-risk level for acrylamide (0.2 mcg per day), the threshold Consumer Reports applied at a serving a day. Acrylamide forms whenever starchy food is fried, baked or roasted. At 240 ppb it was the highest of the four snack bars CR tested, and its two-bar serving carries more acrylamide than a serving of any chip in the test (Lay's Classic 7.37 mcg).
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (acrylamide by LC-MS/MS, J. Agric. Food Chem. 54:7001 (2006)) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: 240 ppb, which is 10.1 mcg in the 42 g (2 bars) serving. CR's reference values: OEHHA NSRL 0.2 mcg/day, MADL 140 mcg/day, EPA reference dose 2 mcg/kg body weight/day.
Glycidyl esters 15 ppb (0.62 mcg per 42 g serving) Moderate
Glycidyl esters form when vegetable oils are refined at high heat and turn into glycidol in the gut — a probable human carcinogen with no safe intake set by EFSA. One serving is about 1.1 times California's no-significant-risk level for glycidol (0.54 mcg per day), the reference CR applied. At 15 ppb the level itself is low; the 42 g two-bar serving is what takes it just over the reference.
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (glycidyl esters by GC-MS/MS, AOAC 2018.03) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: 15 ppb, which is 0.62 mcg per 42 g serving. CR's reference value: OEHHA NSRL for glycidol 0.54 mcg/day. The EU caps GE in retail vegetable oils at 1,000 µg/kg as glycidol; the U.S. has no limit.
3-MCPD Not detected Not detected
Not detected — below the laboratory's method detection limit in every sample. 3-MCPD is a by-product of refining vegetable oil at high heat.
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (3-MCPD by GC-MS/MS, AOAC 2018.03) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: not detected in any sample.
Lead Not detected Not detected
Not detected — below the laboratory's method detection limit in every sample.
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (lead by ICP-QQQ-MS, AOAC 2015.01) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: not detected in any sample.
Cadmium 11.9 ppb (0.50 mcg per 42 g serving) Low
One serving is about 12% of California's Prop 65 maximum allowable dose for cadmium (4.1 mcg per day).
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (cadmium by ICP-QQQ-MS, AOAC 2015.01) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: 11.9 ppb, which is 0.50 mcg per 42 g serving, against the OEHHA MADL of 4.1 mcg/day.
Arsenic 26.2 ppb total, 20.6 ppb inorganic (0.86 mcg inorganic per 42 g serving) Safe
Total arsenic was high enough that CR ran its inorganic-arsenic follow-up, the form that matters for health. One serving is about 9% of California's no-significant-risk level for inorganic arsenic (10 mcg per day). Oats take arsenic up from soil and water.
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (total arsenic by ICP-QQQ-MS, AOAC 2015.01; inorganic arsenic by speciation) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: 26.2 ppb total and 20.6 ppb inorganic, which is 0.86 mcg of inorganic arsenic per 42 g serving.
Mercury Not detected Not detected
Not detected — below the laboratory's method detection limit in every sample.
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (mercury by ICP-QQQ-MS, AOAC 2015.01) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: not detected in any sample.
DEHP (phthalate) Not detected Not detected
Not detected — no phthalates were found in any sample. DEHP is a plasticiser that migrates from processing equipment and packaging.
Consumer Reports' August 2026 kids' snacks test (phthalates by GC-MS/MS, GB 5009.271-2016 mod.) on three Nature Valley Oats 'n Honey samples from two to three lots: DEHP not detected; total phthalates 0 ng per serving.
Key ingredients 10
Canola and/or Sunflower OilVery Bad
Refined seed oils high in pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids. Industrially processed with chemical solvents. The 'and/or' label means the manufacturer uses whichever is cheapest.
See more about Canola and/or Sunflower Oil →SugarBad
Refined sugar is the second ingredient by weight — meaning this bar contains more sugar than any other ingredient except oats. 12g sugar per serving for a 42g bar is 29% sugar by weight.
See more about Sugar →Brown Sugar SyrupBad
A second processed sweetener stacked on top of refined sugar. Two sugar sources in a granola bar is a hallmark of ultra-processing.
See more about Brown Sugar Syrup →Soy LecithinBad
Highly processed emulsifier extracted from soybeans using chemical solvents. Typically derived from GMO soybeans.
See more about Soy Lecithin →Natural FlavorBad
Umbrella term that can hide dozens of undisclosed synthetic flavor constituents.
See more about Natural Flavor →Rice FlourNeutral
Refined grain flour used as a filler and texture agent. Minimal nutritional value.
See more about Rice Flour →SaltNeutral
Standard flavor enhancer.
See more about Salt →Baking SodaNeutral
Leavening agent. Functional and benign.
See more about Baking Soda →HoneyGood
Natural sweetener with trace enzymes and antioxidants. However, it's the fifth ingredient — far less than the sugar and brown sugar syrup that precede it.
See more about Honey →Whole Grain OatsVery Good
Whole grain oats provide fiber, beta-glucan, and complex carbohydrates for sustained energy. The primary ingredient and the only genuinely healthy component.
See more about Whole Grain Oats →Processing
Ultra-Processed Foods
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