Snack Detective: Beijing’s Healthiest Biscuits Available at BHG

Snacks with additives dominate the capital’s markets. Just check the packaging and you’ll discover that even so-called “healthy” wholegrain or cereal biscuits – no matter local brands or imports – are usually stuffed with preservatives, stabilizers, sweeteners and flavor enhancers. That’s why a huge sweet tooth like me usually harvests nothing from supermarkets.

Recently, a pleasant discovery saved my stomach: Mr. Mark’s wholegrain biscuits. The list of ingredients is as clean and natural as you could imagine – buckwheat, German wheat, oats, whole wheat flour, wholegrain powder, extra virgin olive oil, brown sugar, salt-free natural butter, almond chocolate … High in dietary fiber, free of hydrogenated oil and with absolutely no artificial additives, these have become my ideal office snack.

At 25.5%, they’re not low in fat, but there are no trans-fats, and the level of dietary fiber (7.18%) is probably the highest among the various high-fiber biscuits in town (though do let me know if you know of any biscuit higher in fiber). They’re not cheap (RMB 35 for 200g), but such is the price of health. The only place where I know you can get them so far is Guomao’s BHG supermarket, and they’re running out of supplies quickly – mainly because of me, I guess – so hurry up!