Company: Dorset Cereals
Rsp: £2.49 for a 500g pack
Market size: £1.28bn (ready-to-eat cereals)
The competition: Kellogg's, own label
The consumer
The first thing that stands out about this product is its premium packaging - the box is made of recycled fibre with an attractive design and earthy colours. The flakes stayed crunchy till the end, even with milk poured on top. But the dried fruit pieces proved quite sweet and so might be a bit overwhelming for early morning. Eaten dry, it makes a nice sweet snack. I enjoyed the overall taste and the sugar boost but I wouldn't feed this to a small child. Three stars (out of five)
Chie Elliott, freelance journalist, East Sussex
The retailer
The packaging has a premium, contemporary look and feel but the date, almond & sultana variant tasted just like standard raisin bran and I couldn't taste the almonds. The exotic pineapple, papaya and coconut version was even more disappointing. While I could taste the toasted coconut, the pineapple and papaya were highly sweetened, with the texture of candied fruits. They were so sweet I couldn't distinguish which fruit was which. Two stars
Tina Hird, trading controller, Spar UK
The Grocer
These new lines makes a good fist of jazzing up a cereal positioned as healthy. The flakes were fine rather than spectacular but Dorset didn't skimp on the fruit and at £2.49 the 500g box isn't expensive. Surely no consumer would have such lofty expectations they'd exercise the money-back guarantee. You'd feel a bit sorry for someone who regarded high-fibre flakes as the "unadulterated breakfast pleasure" though - rather than, say, champagne and smoked salmon. Four stars
Charlie Wright, web editor
Rsp: £2.49 for a 500g pack
Market size: £1.28bn (ready-to-eat cereals)
The competition: Kellogg's, own label
The consumer
The first thing that stands out about this product is its premium packaging - the box is made of recycled fibre with an attractive design and earthy colours. The flakes stayed crunchy till the end, even with milk poured on top. But the dried fruit pieces proved quite sweet and so might be a bit overwhelming for early morning. Eaten dry, it makes a nice sweet snack. I enjoyed the overall taste and the sugar boost but I wouldn't feed this to a small child. Three stars (out of five)
Chie Elliott, freelance journalist, East Sussex
The retailer
The packaging has a premium, contemporary look and feel but the date, almond & sultana variant tasted just like standard raisin bran and I couldn't taste the almonds. The exotic pineapple, papaya and coconut version was even more disappointing. While I could taste the toasted coconut, the pineapple and papaya were highly sweetened, with the texture of candied fruits. They were so sweet I couldn't distinguish which fruit was which. Two stars
Tina Hird, trading controller, Spar UK
The Grocer
These new lines makes a good fist of jazzing up a cereal positioned as healthy. The flakes were fine rather than spectacular but Dorset didn't skimp on the fruit and at £2.49 the 500g box isn't expensive. Surely no consumer would have such lofty expectations they'd exercise the money-back guarantee. You'd feel a bit sorry for someone who regarded high-fibre flakes as the "unadulterated breakfast pleasure" though - rather than, say, champagne and smoked salmon. Four stars
Charlie Wright, web editor
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