Metcalfe's Skinny Popcorn Sweet 'n Salt

I read that the great British public is buying fewer crisps (sales are down from £1.39 billion to £1.34 billion) but popcorn (sales are up from £50 million to £129 million). These figures seem to be from 2010 to 2015.

You can see for yourselves that crisps are still massively in the lead but that popcorn sales are definitely up. I wonder why that is?

It could be that there is suddenly a bunch of companies selling interesting new flavours of popcorn. Although I can't say why these companies all suddenly leaped into the popcorn market. These things do sometimes happen.

However, some people think that popcorn is simply a bit more healthy than your average crisp and that's why "young people" are drawn to it instead ye olde packet of crisps that everyone has been eating for the past 50 odd years.

That may be so. Particularly in the case of this Skinny Popcorn which is carefully designed to light and at the same time moreish and filling and has only 115 calories per packet. Of course it does have salt (bad for you) and sugar (bad for you) but the packet tells me this is a light, sporty portion. With a delicious natural flavour.

Not bad. Perfectly OK popcorn, a little bit salty a little bit sugary. But not madly exciting. To be honest, the reluctant taste testers and I felt the flavour was just a little bit cardboardy.

Still, it's a gentle and low(ish) calorie popcorn and probably better for you then many crispy snacks on the market.

Metcalfe's Skinny Popcorn Wasabi Glaze

Lulled into a false sense of security by our recent trials of Waitrose Good to Go Wasabi & Ginger Popcorn and Portlebay Popcorn Wasabi & Sweet Ginger, the Chef and I crunched into this packet of Skinny Popcorn without taking proper precautions.

Aaargh! Wow this popcorn is hot and wasabi-y. And green. I think it's a little bit too much for us so I shall take some into work tomorrow and see what the reluctant taste testers have to say.

The list of ingredients is written in a complicated way but the flavourings contain mustard. And, apparently wasabi pea seasoning (as if that's a thing). I mean, I know about wasabi peas but does that mean suddenly that's a flavour? And then the colour comes from chlorophyll, and curcurmin, herb (herb? what herb?), green pea extract powder, and wasabi powder.

I don't think the green colouring has really come out in the photograph which is a shame because this popcorn is pretty green. I put the bowl right next to a light because chlorophyll colouring often shows up better in artificial light but I guess I have failed here. You'll have to take my word for it.

Well the reluctant taste testers quite liked this popcorn. One of them said it was a shame that the taste was good at first bite but then didn't last. Obviously she was looking for more taste. The extremely senior volunteer taste tester ate half the bowl all by himself. They liked it!

We still didn't. But there you are.