If you are looking to have breakroom snacks for your employees, you should seriously mull over the type of snacks to provide them. This is because what they snack on while they are working will affect how they perform.
Snacks that are high in caffeine, sugar, carbs, salt, and fat can have your employees feeling antsy to sluggish. Not to mention these snacks can have a harmful effect on the long-term outlook of their health. But having breakroom snacks with only healthy alternatives is not an option unless of course, everyone agrees. You want your employees to make their own choice, after all, they are adults.
Having the sugary and salty snacks will give those employees who want them access. The key is to initially have some of each and keep adjusting accordingly to what your employees eat more of. Better yet, you can make them part of the process of choosing the snacks.
Take a look at some of the snacks on this list and see if your employees will like them.
Breakroom Snacks
- Top Pick: Brothers-ALL-Natural Fruit Crisps
- Runner Up: Vita Coco Coconut Water, Pure Organic
- Best Value: Frito-Lay Pack, Variety Assortment of Snacks
Brothers-ALL-Natural Fruit Crisps
Top Pick: If fresh produce is not an option for your business, Brothers-ALL-Natural Fruit Crisps are a great alternative. The company makes 100% all-natural snacks made with real fruits and contains no artificial colors or preservatives.
Using a state-of-the-art FREEZE-DRIED process, the water is gently removed from the fresh fruit. And with a shelf-life of two years, it is ideal for buying in bulk.
This variety pack has fuji apples, Asian pears, and bananas, and strawberries. And for those with allergies, the snacks are peanut-free, tree-nut-free, soy-free, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
Brothers-ALL-Natural Fruit Crisps, Variety Pack, 4.44 Ounce Bag, 12 Count (Pack of 2)
Vita Coco Coconut Water, Pure Organic
Runner Up: Organic coconut water is much better than sugary drinks with empty calories. Vita Coco is packed with vitamins, nutrients, and electrolytes (including more potassium than a banana). It is a great way to get naturally hydrated.
This coconut water is fat-free, gluten-free, and Non-GMO. With only 60 calories per bottle, Vita Coco is a low-calorie and low sugar alternative.
Frito-Lay Pack, Variety Assortment of Snacks
Best Value: With an assortment of beef jerky, pumpkin seeds, coconut chips, mixed nuts, cheesy snacks, and pork skins, you can cover most of your savory taste buds.
These snacks have 5g net carbs or less, which makes them suitable for people on a keto diet. If this variety pack is not for you, Frito-Lay makes other packages. This includes a sweet and salty package.
Granted not everything is super healthy in these packages, but sometimes people just want to enjoy something without worrying about the calories or fat content.
Epic 100% Natural Turkey Cranberry & Sage Steak Strip
Jerky has become more popular because of low carb, keto, and paleo diets. And this is responsible for companies making high-quality jerky from many different animals.
The Epic turkey jerky steak strip is 100% natural flavored with cranberry and sage. It has no artificial flavors or preservatives, and it is gluten-free. At only 60 calories and 8 grams of protein, this is a great snack to have in your breakroom.
The company also makes jerky and cured bites from grass-fed Wagyu beef, venison, salmon, bison, and chicken.
Epic 100% Natural Turkey Cranberry & Sage Steak Strip 0.8 Ounce (Pack of 10)
Classic Snack Care Package
On the not-so-healthy side of the snack chart, the classic snack care package from Frito-Lay has items most of us have grown up with.
From Lay’s Classic potato chips to Cheetos, Doritos, Fritos as well as Rold Gold pretzels. There are also sweet snacks in there such as Grandma’s chocolate chips and mini sandwich creams. You get 16 different types of snacks with a total of 40.
Pure Protein Bars, High Protein, Nutritious Snacks
Not everyone wants to eat sugary or salty snacks. For employees that are taking care of their health and exercising, protein bars a key part of their regimen.
Pure Protein provides three different types of protein bars with 20 to 21 grams of protein, a maximum of 3g of sugar, and 180 to 200 calories. The flavors are chocolate peanut butter, chocolate deluxe, and chewy chocolate chip.
Starbucks Frappuccino Drink
Coffee is just as part of the workforce as an office. And with so many different choices, Starbucks’ Frappuccino offers a ready-made alternative to the traditional cup.
A Frappuccino is blend of creamy milk and real brewed Starbucks coffee with arabica beans.
Starbucks – RTD Coffee – RTD Frappuccino Drink 13.7oz Bottles Pack, Coffee, 12 Count
Types of Snacks for Your Breakroom
Will you please everyone with the snacks you provide in your breakroom, highly unlikely. However, you can improve the odds in your favor by providing a selection of healthy and not-so-healthy snacks as well as sending a poll or questionnaire.
Fresh Produce
From bananas and apples to berries and other cut-up fruits and vegetables, you can’t go wrong with fresh produce. These are the types of snacks most people will enjoy. The one drawback to having fresh produce is they have a short shelf life, so make sure to take that into consideration.
Nuts
There are many different kinds of nuts and they provide a wide range of nutritional benefits. This includes protein, healthy fats, fiber, antioxidants, vitamin E, magnesium, copper, manganese, and much more depending on the nut.
Nuts can also lower your risk of heart attack and stroke as well as reduce inflammation, and lower cholesterol and triglycerides. As beneficial as nuts are, you also have to be aware of allergies.
Jerky
Jerky is available in different versions, which include the healthy and not-so-healthy variety. And it is no longer just beef anymore. You can get jerky made from the traditional beef to bison, ostrich, turkey, and fish.
Besides being high in protein (33.2g for 100g of beef jerky), it is also low in calories and fat without raising your insulin levels. The benefits of jerky greatly depend on how the meat is processed and the type of ingredients it uses. Look out for overly processed jerky with too many preservatives and salt.
Snack Bars
Just like beef jerky, snack bars greatly depend on how they are made. You can find some very high-quality products with few if any preservative and artificial ingredients.
Look for bars with low calories, saturated fats, and sugars. There are snack bars to indulge virtually every type of craving, so the best option might be to ask your employees.
Pop Corn
Popcorn is a healthy snack that can also become an indulgence by adding a few ingredients. If you want the health version you can just add a little bit of salt, cinnamon, chili powder, garlic powder, and different types of herbs and spices.
The indulgent versions include butter, sugar, caramel, peanut butter (this can also be healthy), chocolate, and anything you can think of. You can easily turn popcorn into a sweet or savory snack.
Candy
As long as you are not eating candy all the time, an occasional indulgence is not that bad. As with all things, moderation is key.
In addition to providing regular candy bars everyone knows, you can also offer healthier alternatives.
Drinks
Whether hot or cold, there are many options when it comes to drinks. Coffee and tea which can be hot or cold, juices along with almond, soy, and regular milk are all great alternatives to sugary drinks.
Don’t forget about energy and vitamin drinks. They might be too expensive for most small businesses, but they are popular drinks.
Choosing Snacks for Your Breakroom
If you are having a hard time trying to figure out which snacks to stock your breakroom with for your employees, here are a couple of ways to get them involved.
Email your staff and ask them what their favorite snacks are or if you want to go old school, put a suggestion box. After you get the results, you can put it on list and create a poll to come up with the top snacks. You can also pick a different person in charge of choosing the snacks, but this will not be so democratic.
No matter which method you choose don’t forget to ask if anyone has any dietary restrictions, they are allergic, or have health issues that won’t allow them to eat the snacks.
Providing Snacks
Providing snacks to your employees is just one more way in which you can make your company a great place to work. While large corporations have the resources to provide not only snacks but also meals, small businesses have to be more selective with their perks.
It may not be possible for a small business owner to provide snacks every day. In that case, you can choose one day out of the week and make the occasion more special. However, if you can provide it every day, make your employees part of the process of choosing what to provide. This will guarantee they will have what they like and ensure there is less waste.
If you are on a tight budget, you should also consider buying in bulk. For items that have a long shelf life, this is a great idea.
At the end of the day breakroom snacks are not mandatory, but having them makes your workplace a better environment to work in. Just make sure you provide snacks they like eating.
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Images: Amazon
This article, "Great Breakroom Snacks for Your Business" was first published on Small Business Trends
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