Look, we’re not here to trash regular crisps. They’ve been around forever, people love them, and there’s a reason for that—they taste good and they’re satisfying in the moment.
But here’s the truth: traditional crisps were never designed to actually fuel you. They were designed to taste great, be cheap to make, and keep you coming back for more. Mission accomplished on all three, honestly.
We wanted to make something different. Not a health food that tastes like cardboard. Not a “better-for-you” snack that makes you miss the real thing. Just a crisp that actually works with your body instead of against it.
The Big Difference: What They’re Made From
Traditional crisps start with potatoes or corn, get sliced thin, and take a bath in hot oil. That’s it. That’s the recipe that’s worked for decades.
The problem? Potatoes and corn are mostly starch and water. After frying, you’re left with something that’s basically carbs, fat, and salt. A 40g serving of regular crisps gives you about 2g of protein, maybe 1-2g of fiber if you’re lucky, and 10-12g of fat from all that oil.
Your body burns through that fast. The starch breaks down into sugar quickly, your blood sugar spikes, you get a little energy boost, and then—crash. You’re hungry again, maybe even more tired than before.
We built Forma around mycoprotein. It’s made from fungi (before you make a face, mushrooms are fungi too, and you eat those). The difference is massive: mycoprotein is naturally high in protein and fiber. It’s a complete protein, meaning it has all the amino acids your body needs.
So instead of starting with empty starch, we’re starting with something that’s actually nutritious from the ground up. That changes everything else that follows.
How They’re Cooked Matters More Than You Think
Deep frying is fast and it tastes amazing. That’s why everyone does it. But it also means your crisps are soaking up oil like a sponge, which is why traditional crisps can have 30-40% fat by weight.
We bake ours. Not because we’re trying to be virtuous, but because it means we can control exactly how much fat ends up in each crisp. Our 40g serving has 6-8g of fat—enough to taste good and keep you satisfied, not so much that you feel heavy after.
Baking also means we can use better oils. We’re not dunking things in whatever cheap vegetable oil is available. We use oils you’d actually cook with at home, which makes a difference in how your body processes them.
The Protein and Fiber Game-Changer
Here’s where things get interesting. Traditional crisps have barely any protein—usually around 2g per serving. That’s not enough to do anything useful for your body.
Forma has 9-10g of protein in a 40g serving. That’s not a tiny boost, that’s a meaningful amount. It’s enough to actually keep you full, stabilize your blood sugar, and give your body something to work with.
The fiber difference is just as stark. Regular crisps? Maybe 1-2g if you’re lucky. Ours? 4-5g per serving, all from the mycoprotein and whole food ingredients we use.
That combination—protein plus fiber—is what keeps you satisfied for hours instead of minutes. It’s why you can eat a bag of Forma at 3pm and not need another snack before dinner. With regular crisps, you’re usually hunting for something else within the hour.
What This Actually Means For Your Day
Let’s get real about how this plays out in actual life.
You’re at your desk, it’s mid-afternoon, and you need something. You grab regular crisps. They taste great, you crush the whole bag, and for about ten minutes you feel good. Then your energy dips, you’re somehow hungrier than before, and you’re eyeing the vending machine again.
Same scenario, but you grab Forma instead. They taste great (we made sure of that), you eat them, and then… you just keep working. No crash. No immediate need for a second snack. You’re actually satisfied.
That’s not magic. That’s just what happens when you give your body protein and fiber instead of just refined carbs and oil.
But Do They Actually Taste Good?
This is the question everyone has, and it’s fair. Because what’s the point of “better nutrition” if you’re forcing yourself to eat something you don’t enjoy?
We spent a lot of time on this. The texture had to be right—that satisfying crunch that makes crisps, well, crisps. The flavors had to be bold enough to compete with what you’re used to. The satisfaction factor had to be there.
Traditional crisps have had decades to perfect their formula. We had to match that while using completely different ingredients and a different cooking method. It took time, a lot of testing, and probably too many batches that didn’t quite work.
But we got there. Because at the end of the day, nutrition doesn’t matter if you don’t want to eat it.
The Honest Answer
Are Forma crisps “better” than traditional crisps? Depends on what you mean by better.
If you’re looking for the cheapest option and you don’t care what happens to your energy levels after, traditional crisps are fine. If you eat them occasionally and they bring you joy, keep doing that. Life’s too short to stress about every snack.
But if you’re someone who snacks regularly—and most of us are—and you’re tired of the crash, the constant hunger, the feeling like your snacks are working against you instead of for you, then yeah, Forma is better.
More protein. More fiber. Baked instead of fried. Real ingredients you can pronounce. And most importantly, they actually keep you going instead of leaving you reaching for another snack twenty minutes later.
We’re not trying to replace every crisp you ever eat. We’re just offering an option that does more than fill space. One that tastes great and actually fuels you.
That’s the difference. And once you feel it, it’s hard to go back.