A bar, also called a snack bar or a food bar, is a food made of processed ingredients formed into the shape of bar. Bars typically have a long shelf life and contain high energy ingredients. There are several popular types of bar, including confectionery bars, protein bars, energy bars, granola bars and fruit bars.
They are one of the most popular forms of snack food, with diversification across different segments of both convenience and health foods. Typical ingredients in a bar are cereal grain, dehydrated fruits or vegetables, seeds, chocolate and dairy. The introduction of the cold chain, has allowed for similar foods to emerge in the frozen food segment such as ice cream bars.
Historical precedents
High quality, portable dense energy foods have long been a part of food preservation and long-distance travel. Food like
Pemmican provided long-term storage, while preserving the food in a high density bar in indigenous North America.
In Europe, classical Greek soldiers probably made dishes like Pastelli, a high density honey and sesame seed bar that can transport and endure long distances.
In India, foods like Chikki have been served as a desert dish that concentrates sugar and nuts. In Aztec food traditions, Amaranth seed is often combined with honey to create seed cakes, that are served in modern Mexico as alegrÃa.
Types of bar
The majority of food bars are sweet, rather than savory.
Different types of bar may be marketed for specific purposes, like
Meal replacement or providing protein, or may be marketed to specific demographics like women. Some bars are made to adhere to dietary restrictions like the
paleolithic diet or the
gluten-free diet.
Chocolate or candy bars
The first chocolate bars were developed after Joseph Fry,
John Cadbury, and Benjamin Cadbury developed a technique for producing solid chocolate. Combination bars, including additional ingredients such as nuts or dried fruit, were developed in the 1910s. One of the most successful was the
Clark Bar, introduced in 1917.
Chocolate bars became popular in the 20th-century as palatable and inexpensive high-energy snack items. Some of these bars have become important for different subcultures, such as the widespread use of Kendal Mint Cake in the climbing and mountaineering community in the UK.
Dessert bar
Energy bars
Food ration bars
Food ration bars are commonly produced as
field rations for armed services. Ration bars are more convenient and more nutritious than
canned food. They vary in type between cereal-type bars and confectionery bars, and may include various freeze-dried and dehydrated ingredients, such as meat, fruits, vegetables, and grain.
Fruit bars
Fruit bars are made of compressed
dried fruit. Common additives include
vegetable oil, sweeteners, and binders such as wheat or oat flour.
Granola bars
Granola bars are made of
granola,
muesli or cereal, typically including oat flakes, vegetable fats or oils, and some type of sweetener. Many granola bars contain additional ingredients such as nuts, dried fruits, and seeds. They become popular in the 1960s as part of the counterculture
Hippie movement.
Ice cream
Protein bars
Protein bars are commonly consumed by athletes due to their nutritional density and high protein content, which provides energy quickly and assists in growing and repairing connective tissues.
Weightlifter Bob Hoffman marketed Hi-Proteen Honey Fudge bars in the 1950s. Space Food Sticks were marketed by Pillsbury in 1969, based on the ration bars provided to astronauts in the American Space Program.
They were popularized among amateur fitness enthusiasts after the introduction of the
PowerBar in 1986.
The emergence of a distinct "high protein" food culture in the late 20th and early 21st century, has led to a widespread marketing and development of low calory high-protein bars.
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