Berry Chill

I had to try Berry Chill last night when a group I was with headed that direction with a purpose. Apparently this is the new craze. I'm usually the last to know about such things so I'm behind the curve I guess but at least I can say I tried it now. Part of the craze appears to surround claims that this is healthy. It's advertised as all natural yogurt with no artificial chemicals and live active cultures, infused with various probiotics. Unfortunately, the website and stores contain "nutritional facts" but omit the ingredients. Is this suspicious or just thoughtful protection of a secret recipe?

A few interesting things though. First off, a serving size to Berry Chill is 1 ounce. Odd then that a small is 5 ounces, and the medium I saw half the people in there eating is 8 ounces (those of you that are hungry can get the large for a full 12 servings). Therefore, your fat free dessert actually contains 20 grams of sugar in the small alone -- your Berry Chill is nearly 20% sugar. A "typical" non-frozen yogurt would contain less than 8% sugar, though many flavored yogurts come closer to Berry Chill levels -- Dannon's Activa yogurt in innocent vanilla flavor is over 15% sugar. Sugar is a healthy necessary component in one's diet but is the sugar refined? What exactly is added? We can't know.

Berry Chill also claims to be lactose free. This helps them overcome all those lactose intolerant people out there (and I'd argue that's partly genetics and largely due to the pasteurization of milk) who can't eat normal frozen yogurt or ice cream without getting stomach aches (read = bad for business). Oddly, though, yogurt is normally far from lactose free (though more digestible due to live cultures, etc.) So how does Berry Chill make lactose free yogurt? Probably by starting with lactose free milk (interestingly, the beneficial bacteria in yogurt requires the presence of lactose, so Berry Chill either lacks much of that bacteria or is just adding it back in with the probiotics at the end). But what of this lactose free milk? It can't be natural. Is it rice-based? Soy-based? Curious but we can't know since we can't see the ingredients.

My last comment on Berry Chill goes to the toppings. Most people I saw go with a combination of fruit and sweets (some go all fruit). Most nutritionists would agree that fruit is best eaten on an empty stomach. Eating it any other way causes digestive problems including fermentation. Berry Chill is often eaten as a dessert and therefore the worst time to eat fruit (plus even if you're eating it on an empty stomach you're not eating it alone -- as recommended). I don't need to go into the health implications of the other topics but to note my disappointment that we can't see what's IN them. Why does a company that's so concerned with showing itself as healthy list nutritional facts for a plain 1 ounce cup of frozen "yogurt" when most people in there are eating 5-12 ounce cups piled high with chocolate chips, girl scout cookies and canned fruit?

This is a good idea I suppose and a great marketing feat, but people are eating it in the dark spoon by spoon.