Hemp seeds are nothing new in our household, for years my partner has been trying to get me to put hemp seeds in everything from my oatmeal to a chicken stir-fry and more. Most of the time Forest has to hide them in the food for me to eat them. He enjoys everything from hemp seeds, hemp protein, to hemp oil.

The Hemp Plant

Photo Credit: TreeHugger.com

The hemp plant itself is an amazing plant that can be used to make food, clothing, rope, paper, building materials, animal bedding/herd, plastic, paint, fuel and more. For those unfamiliar with hemp is a species of Cannabis sativa. However it is often confused with marijuana; hemp is not marijuana. Hemp contains 0.001% Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and will NOT cause a psychoactive effect nor will our products cause a false positive drug test. You won’t get high eating hemp seeds.

Hemp has been used for years in rope building, clothing and more. Only recently have more people realized the seeds of the plant are a fantastic plant-based source of protein. Especially, for my vegan and vegetarian friends. While we do eat meat in our household hemp remains an important protein source, more for Forest than myself, but I am slowly converting as I move away from whey based proteins.

Manitoba Harvest Hemp Heart Bars

Recently, I had the chance to work with Manitoba Harvest through FitFluential, and they sent along three of their new bars for a taste test as well as a pedometer. This was a chance for me to give hemp seeds another try in a new convenient bar form. Manitoba Harvest sent along the three new flavors Apple Cinnamon, Vanilla, and Chocolate. When they first arrived I put a photo on Instagram about them and people chimed in with their favorite flavors. Yesterday I got a chance to try out the three flavors myself.

Apple Cinnamon Bar

The apple cinnamon bar was by far my favorite in the taste test. The flavor is just enough apple and cinnamon to couple with the nuttiness of the hemp seeds. The dried apples added to the texture of the bar making it a great bar. The ingredients are simple to read are:

Ingredients: Hemp Hearts, organic coconut palm sugar, organic brown rice syrup, dried apple, cinnamon, organic apple flavor, pectin, organic sunflower oil, organic caramel flavor, rosemary extract.

Each bar contains 10 grams of protein and 10 grams of Omega 3&6. A case of 12 bars retails on the Manitoba Harvest site for $31.99.

Chocolate Bar

The Chocolate Bar was as a good one. It has a subtle chocolate flavor that does not overpower the bar. If you are looking ing for that candy bar tasting chocolate this is not the bar for you. However, if you are looking for that hint of cocoa in your bars then this will do the trick. The ingredients are:

Ingredients: Hemp Hearts, organic brown rice syrup, organic coconut palm sugar, organic cocoa mass, organic dutch-process cocoa, organic chocolate flavor, pectin, organic sunflower oil, rosemary extract.

Each bar contains 10 grams of protein and 10 grams of Omega 3&6. A case of 12 bars retails on the Manitoba Harvest site for $31.99.

Vanilla Bar

Out of the three flavors the vanilla is well the most vanilla. The bar tastes good but for the most part the hemp seed flavor was the star on this bar. The vanilla was very subtle. The rich nutty flavor of the hemp seeds are highlighted in this bar with an aftertaste of vanilla. The ingredients in this bar are:

Ingredients: Hemp Hearts, organic coconut palm sugar, organic brown rice syrup, organic vanilla flavor, sea salt, pectin, organic sunflower oil, rosemary extract.

Each bar contains 10 grams of protein and 10 grams of Omega 3&6. A case of 12 bars retails on the Manitoba Harvest site for $31.99.

Overall, all the bars were tasty and a good way for me to bring more hemp seeds into my diet as well as more plant based protein in the form of hemp. For me I found a tasty way to eat my hemp seeds!

*Samples were provided for this review from Manitoba Harvest in partnership with FitFluential in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are those of the author.