Reading a health mix label: five things worth checking

We would rather you bought a good pack from someone else than a bad pack from us. Here is what to look at.

1. The order of the ingredient list

By law, ingredients are listed heaviest first. If the first two lines are rice flour and sugar, that is what you are mostly buying, whatever the front of the pack shows. Look for a millet or a pulse near the top.

2. Where sugar sits

"No added sugar" on the front means nothing if sugar, dextrose, maltodextrin or "liquid glucose" appears in the list. Those are all sugar. A genuinely unsweetened mix will not have any of them anywhere.

3. The number on the front versus the list on the back

A pack proudly saying "40 grains!" should have forty things on the back that you can count. If the last twenty are a fraction of a percent each, that is marketing rather than nutrition. Count them.

4. Whether it says whole

"Ragi" and "ragi flour" can both be refined. "Whole ragi" or "whole grain" tells you the bran survived. Refining removes most of the fibre and a good share of the minerals.

5. A packing date, not just an expiry

Ground grain goes stale from the day it is milled — the natural oils in nuts and seeds begin to turn. A pack made eight months ago is technically within expiry and already tastes flat. Look for a packing date, and prefer sellers who print one.

And one thing that is not on the label

Smell the powder when you open it. A fresh, well-roasted mix smells sweet and nutty. If it smells of nothing, it is old. If it smells sharp or like old oil, the nuts have gone rancid — send it back and ask for a refund. Any honest seller will give you one.