P3? Unfortunately, it Doesn’t Mean Perfectly Paleo & Portable…

“Introducing the P3 Portable Protein Pack. It’s not rocket science. It’s not even Chemistry 101. It’s just 13 grams of protein from food, proven effective by thousands of years of human existence.”

Sound like a tag line for the latest, greatest, grassroots Paleo product, developed by a couple of people in their own kitchen, with the intention of creating a healthy, portable meal or snack?

That would make sense, given the reference to the ‘thousands of years of human existence’, right?

Wrong.

And I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw which company it is that is jumping on this bandwagon.

It was a TV spot, so clearly, it had to be a major corporation as, let’s face it, most of the Paleo companies wouldn’t likely have the budget for this type of media exposure.

It was Oscar Meyer.

Their new product, “P3”, according to their site,  consists of different variations of meats (if you consider what they sell to be meat and not a meat byproduct), nuts and cheeses.

With less than 1gram of sugar and 14grams of protein, it must be a great choice, correct?

Oh, dear, no.

Not by a long shot.

Do you suppose they’re careful about using only pastured pork & poultry, grass fed beef, and raw, organic nuts?

Why should they, when there is a much larger profit margin if the cheapest, lowest quality, most inhumane sources are used.

Check out fooducate.com’s site and you’ll see the following ingredients:

APPLEWOOD SMOKED HAM-Contains 18% of seasoning solution: ham, water, cultured dextrose, contains less than 2% of salt, brown sugar, cultured celery juice, vinegar, sodium phosphates, cherry powder. ingredient to preserve quality. reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese- reduced fat sharp cheddar cheese(pasteurized part-skim milk, cheese culture, salt, enzymes, annatto, [color], vitamim a palamitate); potato starch, cellulose powder and calcium sulfate added to prevent caking; natamycin (a natural mold inhibitor)

Perhaps a slightly better option than candy and soda due to the lower amount of sugar, but that’s about it.

You’re paying for packaging, too, so don’t forget to factor that in.

You’re far better off popping into a grocery store and buying that bag of pre washed, organic spinach, some raw walnuts and perhaps some sliced roasted turkey from the deli, if they offer a pastured, unsalted option. If not, and you’re in a real pinch, buy a can of water packed tuna, give it a rinse and as a once in a while protein, it’s still a far better option that this awful little snack pack.