Anyone with youngsters in their household will probably know the strange grip the fruity treat Bear Yo Yo holds over kids. With the clever addition of a Bear Yo Yo collectible card in every packet, they've become a must-have lunchbox treat for kids.
They can be purchased as individual packs, which contain two rolls of compressed fruit, or as a multi-pack box of five in all major supermarkets. These retail around the £2.60 mark for a box, when not on special offers (which we've rounded up at the bottom of this article).
But recently, budget supermarket Aldi has come up with its own version of the sweet treat, which can currently be bought as individual packs in store and online for 39p each. Meanwhile Lidl has its own version too, purchased in boxes of five for £1.79 in stores.
Read more : Asda, Lidl, Aldi and Sainsbury's join Morrison's in hiking milk prices
So it seemed like high time to give all three options a whirl (and an unwind) to see how they compare on taste and value for money. Naturally, I had the assistance of my Bear Yo Yo-obsessed 7-year-old to give the authentic kid verdict.
Here's how we got on.
How they compare
Bear Yo Yos are particularly popular with parents as they're seen as a healthier sweet treat option for kids, billed as "one of your five a day" on the packets. The first thing I noticed is that the Aldi and Lidl fruit winders don't make that claim on their packaging.
However they're all the same size - 20g, and they all have all-fruit puree ingredients listed on the label. For this comparison, we tested the strawberry version of the winder in all three supermarkets.
Aldi have gone for dinosaurs as their branding for their Dinos real fruit packs, while Lidl's pure fruit Wind Ups boast a giraffe on the front.
The Bear Yo Yo was fat free and had the lowest naturally-occurring sugars listed of the three at 42g per 100g, while Lidl's had 1.7g fat per 100g and 50.4g sugars and Aldi's had the most sugars at 54.3g and 1.1g fat per 100g. Calories for the Bear Yo Yo packet were 56kcal, the Aldi packet was 57 kcal and Lidl's 67 kcal.
As we attempted to unwind them all, we noted that the Aldi one felt stickier than the others, and as a result was actually a little easier to unravel. The Lidl one appeared to be a firmer consistency and we struggled to unwind it, but all three were of a similar length.
Price and flavour options
Bear Yo Yo usually retail at £2.60 for a box of five (you can find current offers at the end of this article) and now come in a range of flavours, including mango, apple, blackcurrant, raspberry, strawberry and smoothie combination flavours.
Aldi's real fruit Dinos are priced at 39p for individual packets in store and online here. They're new to Aldi, and it looks like they will soon be available in boxes of five but are currently showing as out of stock online.
So based on buying five of the individual packs it would cost you £1.95 at Aldi. They are currently selling raspberry and strawberry flavours in the range.
The Lidl pure fruit Wind Ups are available in boxes of five, priced at £1.79 in store only, which are working out as the cheapest option in our price comparison (when Bear Yo Yos are purchased at full price). They are currently sold in the flavours of mango and strawberry.
The taste test
George proclaimed his favourite for flavour was the Aldi Dinos snack - although he gave the all-important "thumbs up" to all three on taste.
When I tackled all three for a taste test, the first thing that struck me was the pleasant fragrance of the Aldi version - a very sweet strawberry smell. Which might be why it won over the young 'un.
The Lidl fruit winder was the firmest and crunchiest of the bunch, but in terms of taste I think this one just edged it for me. But all three were so very similar in taste if it had been a blind taste test you'd really struggle to differentiate between them all.
But of course the big selling point of the Bear Yo Yo - and why they appear to have such a pull on kiddies everywhere - is those pesky Bear cards. My youngster has collected them all already (and made me download the Bear App which he's constantly refreshing and updating).
And as if hundreds of the things constantly being shuffled around the living room weren't enough, there's apparently a new "creature creations" set about to go into packets for him to start collecting all over again. Needless to say, the cards inside the Aldi and Lidl packets are blank white ones.
Bear Yo Yo price offers
The good news is, with a new school term underway, Bear Yo Yos seem to be on a lot of special offers at the big supermarkets across the UK right now. The usual RRP of £2.60 has been slashed in stores.
The cheapest we've found them on offer this week is at Tesco, for £1.60 - but only if you have a Clubcard. Otherwise, the next cheapest option would be at Waitrose, where they're currently on offer at £1.73.
So here's a round-up of supermarket prices for Bear Yo Yos that we've found this week (as at September 16, 2022).
Asda - £1.80 (on rollback from £2.60)
Waitrose - £1.73 (save 1/3 offer, down from £2.60)
Morrisons - £1.75 (on offer down from £2.59)
Tesco - £1.60 with a Clubcard, otherwise £2.60
The verdict
While Bear Yo Yos are on special offer at the moment, it's definitely worth stocking up as they're working out cheaper than the Lidl and Aldi versions anyway at Waitrose, Tesco, Morrisons and Asda. If you're anything like my household, the lure of those Bear cards is strong.
But the good thing for me doing this taste test is that both my children have happily eaten all three different versions without batting an eyelid. So I don't feel I would necessarily have to stick to the main branded version in future - if and when prices of Bear Yo Yos return to the £2.60 RRP in supermarkets.
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