On my last visit to the local grocery store, I noticed a new health food section. This was of course a very pleasant surprise and most welcome addition. However, we must note that even though a food item might come from a health food store or a health food section, if it comes in a box, can or similar package, it is still processed food.

Anyway, what caught my eye was a type of cracker which I have been seeing a lot over the past few months. In fact some people have also asked me what I thought of them. Having never tried them before, I decided to finally give them a try and share in a review with you all my thoughts about them.

The crackers are Mary’s Organic Crackers. They come in 5 flavors: Original, Caraway, Herb, Black Pepper, and Onion. I decided to try the Herb variety.

Mary’s Organic Crackers is a company out of north California. As implied by the name, yes there is a Mary behind the brand. Mary Waldner is the founder of the company who decided to venture into producing food options that were gluten-free inspired by her own struggles with Celiac disease.

Mary’s Organic Crackers are therefore wheat-free, gluten-free, have no added fats or oils, organic, kosher, use whole grains, are non-GMO, have no added sugars, are vegan, and of course dairy-free.

From this perspective they sound great and get only better once one looks at their ingredients. All the ingredients are real and whole, offering a short and concise list of real and healthy food ingredients.

When one opens the package, the crackers literally look like a bunch of seeds glued together. I say this in a positive way, that one actually feels more like they are eating real food, rather than some ground down, heavily processed products.

However, as wonderful as the attributes of this cracker are, we have to keep in mind that it is still a processed food and far from being a nutritiously living food. Thus, while they may offer a great option if stuck to bring snacks to a party, or have instead of any commercial crackers or chips, or grab a box in some odd case emergency, this is still not food which I believe should be depended on, on a regular basis.

In terms of taste, the crackers generally taste nice, though they can be oddly bitter depending on which one you bite into. Some have a nice herb taste, some have a more bitter taste. Although they are all flat and round, their shapes and sizes are not uniform either. I didn’t particularly mind this, as if anything, they resemble a more “home-made” product rather than something that came out of a factory.

In terms of texture, yes, as the box claims the crackers are “super crunchy”. This was generally nice, but some of them are so hard and crunchy that I braced myself for any teeth damages. I am not kidding, some of the dried out seed pieces in the crackers are really hard and definitely don’t do your teeth any favors. I definitely don’t recommend anyone with weak teeth or build-ups to eat these crackers.

So in the end, yes Mary’s Organic Crackers are probably the best of the worst, when it comes to processed food crackers. They offer real, whole, organic ingredients with no chemical fillers, preservatives or any kind of additives. They are a great option if you find yourself amongst people who are eating chips, pretzels or crackers and you want to have something relatively healthy of your own to snack on, especially if you are a vegan or need gluten-free food. However, making sure that we understand processed food versus real, whole, fresh food is important here to make ourselves not depend on foods like these as part of a regular optimally healthy diet.

Ingredients

  • Organic whole short grain brown rice
  • Organic whole quinoa
  • Organic brown flax seeds
  • Organic brown sesame seeds
  • Water
  • Organic garlic
  • Organic herbs
  • Organic wheat-free tamari
    (Water, Whole Organic Soybeans, Salt Organic Alcohol)
  • Sea salt

Nutritional Information

(per 13 crackers/30g serving)

  • 140 Calories
  • 5 g Fat
  • 0.5g Saturated Fat
  • 2.5g Polyunsaturated Fat (1.0g omega-6, 0.5g omega-3)
  • 1.5g Monounsaturated
  • 3g Protein
  • 21 g Carbohydrate
  • 0g Sugar
  • 3g Fiber
  • 180mg Sodium
  • 170mg Potassium
  • 0 mg Cholesterol

Vitamins & Minerals

  • 4% Calcium
  • 6% Iron

Packaging

The crackers come in a 184g/6.5oz size. They are bagged in a clear sealed plastic bag, which then is placed into a cardboard box. Both items are recyclable, however to minimize packaging needs, it would be great to have them just come in a bag.

Price (as of this posting)

  • Around $5 CDN/US for the 184g/6.5oz box size at local grocery/health food store
  • $48.00US for a case of 12 – 6.5oz packages from Mary’s Organic Crackers
  • $43.74US for a case of 12 – 6.5oz package from Amazon.com
  • $15.01Us for a case of 3 – 6.5oz package from Amazon.com

Availability

  • In Canada & US at local health food stores and grocery stores
  • Online stores
  • To find a store see Store Locator

The Good

  • Excellent real ingredients
  • Excellent health promoting ingredients
  • No artificial additives
  • No preservatives
  • No additives
  • GMO-free
  • Wheat-free
  • Gluten-free
  • Dairy-free
  • Vegan
  • Kosher
  • Use whole grains
  • No added oils or fats
  • No added sugars
  • Trans-fat free
  • Source of omega-3 fatty acids
  • Good nutritional profile
  • Fair taste

The Bad

  • Pricey
  • Still a form of processed food
  • Not fresh, raw, living food
  • Can be very hard and crunchy, use caution when biting/chewing them