Click on any of the questions below to find the answers.
Yes!
The card for our boxes is unbleached and made from 100% recycled fibre and so do please recycle it when you’ve run out of uses for it.
The inner bags for our muesli, granola and flakes is made from one single material PE polythene, which basically means it is totally recyclable with your normal plastics where the right facilities exist.
Our pots are made of polypropylene which is widely used for containers that are designed for hot liquids and is found in yogurt containers, syrup bottles and ketchup bottles amongst others. This means it’s recyclable, typically being recycled into lighting, caballing, battery cases, hard plastic utensils, pallets and trays – but only where facilities exist. Not all Councils are currently able to recycle this particular plastic, but attitudes are changing, and more and more areas are widening their recycling horizons. Alternatively you could re-use the pots, to store paperclips, make tiny sandcastles or anything really, just use your imagination.
Unfortunately at the moment the film lid on our pots is not recyclable, but hopefully this may change soon. Our porridge sachets are also not recyclable because we need a high enough food barrier to keep everything fresh. However, we are always looking into an alternative that will both be recyclable and protect the porridge.
As our customers know, our premium cereal recipes are packed full of dried fruit, nuts and seeds – and these are the ingredients that make our cereals taste great.
When fruit is dried to preserve it, the naturally occurring sugars are concentrated into each little raisin, cranberry or blueberry and these tasty fruits then add sweetness to a recipe – it really is as simple as that.
A small number of our ingredients have a minute amount of sugar added to either preserve the fruit or bring out the flavour of the ingredient. This sugar is only found in our recipes in very small amounts and we avoid using ingredients with added sugar wherever possible. Many of our recipes are completely free from any added sugar whatsoever, such as Heavenly High Fibre, Our Lovely Organic Muesli, Classic Fruit, Roasted Nuts and Seeds, Simply Delicious, Gloriously Nutty, Simply Nutty, Proper Porridge and Proper Raspberry and Pumpkin Seed Porridge.
Our premium granolas are baked products and we want them to deliver a good crunchy sweet texture. To enable the oats in the recipe to do this we have used either honey, golden syrup or marmalade depending on the product.
Our products are not complicated. We mix fruit and flakes together and we would never try to hide anything. All our packs carry full nutritional and ingredient details. Further information including full GDA figures are available on each individual recipe page on the website. To make the figures as accurate as possible we have included milk in our calculations. The figures shown are for exactly what you would have in the bowl. In addition if you have any specific nutritional questions, please do contact our nutritional team at the following address: nutrition@dorsetcereals.co.uk
The fat in our recipes is “good” fat from the delicious nuts and seeds we pack into our recipes. Nuts and seeds are high in fibre, rich in a wide range of vitamins and minerals and a good source of protein. They are also an excellent source of monounsaturated fat, which is thought to help reduce cholesterol in the blood. Some of the wholegrain cereals we use – for example, oats and barley – also contain naturally occurring fats and sugars.
“May contain XXX”, means that we cannot guarantee that the product is totally free from XXX, despite all reasonable precautions. An example would be “May contain nuts”. Due to the allergenic nature of nuts, we cannot say that a product is nut-free as it is manufactured in an environment where nuts are used. All precautions are in place, such as separate storage and full clean-down between products, but there is still a very small risk of cross-contamination.
Dorset Cereals has always had the interests of the environment as part of its key brand values. However we take a pragmatic approach and work within our manufacturing process to make it greener, rather than adding to or deviating from the process. We don’t generate our own electricity but make sure that we buy green electricity.
We are uncompromising in our dedication to finding the highest quality; the ingredients we use are sourced from the four corners of the world. For example, the recipes don’t just use raisins, they use jumbo-size black raisins, which are believed to be the most flavoursome and have become Dorset Cereals’ signature ingredient.
The majority of Dorset Cereals grains are grown and processed in the UK although as Britain doesn’t produce dried fruit and nuts in any great quantity we have to import these. Our Simply Delicious and Simply Fruity mueslis contain the largest majority of British ingredients and if you want to eat totally British our Simply Porridge is your best bet.
With all of our recipes we make sure they taste great and keep salt to a minimum. However, some of our toasted flakes taste better with just a tiny bit of salt added. We think that breakfast should be enjoyed not endured, so we use just enough salt to achieve this. We monitor the amount used very carefully to make sure that we do not make a significant contribution to the total amount of salt allowed for the day. For example a 65g serving of Tasty Toasted Spelt with 125ml of milk (milk also contains salt) contains 0.8g of salt or 13% of your recommended daily amount.
Yes, our Tasty Low Flakes contain just 2% fat – and taste delicious! Click here to read more about Tasty Low Fat Flakes. Anything under 3% is classed as Low Fat and under 1.5% Saturated Fat is claimed as Low in Saturated Fat.
We cannot categorically claim that a serving of our muesli can count towards a portion of your 5-a-day. According to the Food Standards agency, 1 portion = 80g. In the case of dried fruit, this equates to 1 heaped tablespoon. The added issue is that it should be a single ingredient. This would mean a tablespoon of sultanas / raisins, or a tablespoon of apricots in a serving. (Nuts and seeds don’t count.) If you would like to find out more information about 5-a-day, have a look at the Food Standards website www.eatwell.gov.uk/healthydiet/nutritionessentials/fruitandveg or the NHS 5-a-day website, www.5aday.nhs.uk/topTips You could, however, use orange juice instead of milk on your cereal. 125ml of juice is one of your 5-a-day.
No, we don’t make any products which are totally gluten-free. Our Tasty Toasted Spelt has a gentle gluten structure which some people with gluten sensitivities might find easier to digest.
Yes, we do – our Organic Fruit, Nuts & Seeds. This is a tasty blend of organically grown raisins, sultanas, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, Brazil nuts and multi-grain flakes.
No, we can’t guarantee that our muesli has not been near any nuts. We use a huge amount of nuts and store them within our warehouse. Although we take every possible precaution – with separate storage, full clean-downs and staff vigilance – we’re not able to guarantee a nut-free environment.
We no longer use any palm oil in our recipes. We have worked hard with our suppliers to remove any trace of palm oil from our ingredients. Currently our packaging for Berries and Cherries still says we have a small amount of palm oil in the ingredients list. This is old packaging and because we are keen to minimize waste we are continuing to use this even though we have no trace of palm oil in the product. Our new packaging will illustrate that palm oil has been removed.
Diabetics should follow a nutritionally balanced diet according to the type and severity of their diabetes. Unfortunately we cannot recommend our products for specific diets, and you should consult with your Practice Nurse / Dietician for specific food advice. Our products which do not have added sugar in are: Organic Fruits, Nuts & Seeds; Really Nutty; Super High Fibre; Simply Delicious; Simply Porridge; Apple & Raisin Porridge. The sugars declared on these products are all intrinsic, eg fruit sugars.
With the exception of the recipes listed below, all of our products are suitable for vegans.
All our products are registered with The Vegetarian Society.
Yes, our Tasty, Toasted Spelt, Barley & Oat Flakes recipe makes a great alternative to modern wheat. Spelt’s fragile gluten structure makes it more water soluble and therefore easier to digest than modern wheat – though please note that spelt is still a source of gluten!
We do not use any Genetically Modified ingredients in any of our recipes at all. We are uncompromising in our dedication to finding the highest quality ingredients and both our suppliers and ourselves test all ingredients to ensure that our products are free from GM.
Calories are the fuel for the body. They come from the carbohydrates, fats and proteins in foods. By their very nature, energy-dense ingredients such as nuts are high in fuel or calories. A recipe which is lower in calories is our Tasty Low Fat Flakes, which is produced with calorie-light flakes and freeze-dried fruits. As part of a nutritionally balanced diet, all our products will contribute to a healthy diet plan.
Our Good Honest Crunch recipes and new cereal bars (including Dark Chocolate & Macadamia, Date & Pecan and Fantastically Fruity) do not contain the Kosher Certificate, but we are working on this. As soon as they are, we will let you know. All our other recipes carry the Kosher symbol and are approved by the London Beth Din.
None of our recipes contain peanuts and we produce our mueslis and Tasty Flakes in a peanut free environment and our suppliers of our fruits, nuts and seeds also send the ingredients to us with a peanut free guarantee. However the production of our baked recipes are produced without this guarantee (including our Good Honest Crunch and cereal bars, they are made in a peanut environment). If you have a peanut allergy - all of our recipes are free from peanuts with the exception of: Honey Granola, Marmalade Granola, Chocolate & Macadamia Granola, Cranberry & Almond Chunky Slice, Date & Pecan Chunky Slice Pumpkin & Pistachio Chunky Slice, Berries & Cherries Cereal Bar, Super High Fibre Cereal Bar, Fruit Nuts & Seeds Cereal Bar, Honey Granola Bar, Apple and Raisin Bar, Blackcurrant, Cherry & Raspberry Bar, Almond, Brazil & Hazelnut Bar, Dark Chocolate & Macadamia Bar, Date & Pecan Bar, Fantastically Fruity Bar, Good Honest Crunch with strawberries & raspberries and our Good Honest Crunch with toffee and pecans.
