The Off-Putting Smartfood Popcorn Flavor We Wouldn't Buy Again

All-natural snack foods have become a big trend over the past few years, appealing to health-conscious customers with promises of fewer calories, no artificial ingredients, and so on. While some of these products manage to be as tasty as the originals, others are not worth buying, no matter the potential benefits. For example, when we ranked eight Smartfood popcorn flavors, the Simply White Cheddar turned out to be a total flop.

Smartfood's classic White Cheddar popcorn is so iconic, you may not know that the brand makes other varieties. While we ranked Smartfood's most famous flavor in second place (and also found that it beat Skinny Pop in a popcorn matchup), the Simply White Cheddar turned out to be a mere shadow of the original. It's completely lacking in cheese flavor and tastes more like a very strange buttered popcorn, which isn't what you want in a cheddary snack. In fact, you can only notice the cheese in the aftertaste, and it's a very weak note. This underwhelming popcorn will be especially off-putting to those who love the original White Cheddar.

Smartfood Simply Cheddar contains no artificial ingredients or preservatives, but that's the only noteworthy thing about it. This product might please parents who want to give all-natural snacks to their kids, who likely won't complain about the mild taste. However, as evidenced by our assessment as well as others on the internet, this popcorn has few other redeeming qualities.

Other snack lovers are far from impressed with Smartfood Simply White Cheddar popcorn. One reviewer of the product on the Kroger website said, "This stuff is not good at all. NOTHING like the original. Doesn't taste 'cheesy' and full of hulls." Another review agreed, saying "The original is so much better. This was terrible."

This snack has some positive comments on Walmart's website, but several one-star reviews tell a different story. "This 'simply' is simply more expensive and simply nasty flavored," one shopper wrote, adding that they couldn't taste the cheddar, just a strange metallic note. Another customer said the snack's purported healthiness isn't worth it, writing, "Horrible. Barely any flavor. Would rather just have 20 more calories per cup." One commenter went so far as to say this popcorn "Smells like wet dog and doesn't taste much better." If you want cheesy popcorn with no artificial flavors of preservatives, you're better off making your own using some tips to make the best popcorn.

While the Simply White Cheddar is a bust, it shouldn't turn you off from lesser-known Smartfood flavors. The best Smartfood popcorn is actually not white cheddar, according to our taste test. The brand's Movie Theater Butter flavor delivers a super buttery, delicious concession stand taste, without being as heavy and oily as actual movie theater popcorn. It's far and away a better buy for popcorn lovers who want to feel a little less weighed-down after a big serving.