Sport Beans Go All Natural

When you’re craving junk food during a long ride or workout, nothing is better than junk food without the junk. A case in point, Sport Beans recently transitioned to an all-natural formula.

Produced by the Jelly Belly Candy Company, the world’s first maker of sports performance jelly beans, the company started flavoring Sport Beans with natural flavors from fruit juices and using colors derived from natural sources this August. The sports candy are also naturally sweetened with evaporated cane juice and are free of corn syrup.

Sport Beans — available for about $1/bag — are now made with tapioca syrup or evaporated cane juice. The four flavors of Lemon Lime, Orange, Berry and Fruit Punch — formulated to energize the body during exercise, the company says — are made with lemon, lime, orange, raspberry, apple and grape juices.

Extreme Sport Beans, a caffeinated variety, are available in watermelon and cherry flavors, both made with real watermelon and cherry juices.

In addition, the company is introducing a new easy-open bag with a resealable zipper. The improved bag makes it easier to dispense the beans while running, biking, hiking and climbing, which is good for those junk food junkies who like to pretend that they have some self control. www.sportbeans.com

—Stephen Krcmar