Compare rice cakes

Research · Rice cakes

What our research found about rice cakes

Rice cakes and rice chips are made from puffed or popped rice, so they inherit rice’s arsenic profile and are easy to overeat because they are light. Plain versions can list only rice and salt; flavored and chocolate-coated versions add sugar, oils and seasonings. Because the base grain is the same across brands, differences come down to flavoring, oil and sodium.

If you eat rice cakes often, think of them as one of several rice-based foods in your week rather than the only snack, and vary with corn, oat, seed or other grain-based snacks. Compare sodium per cake and the type of coating on flavored varieties.

Products

141 brand

Full labels recorded

17% of the shelf

Maker says organic

11maker’s claim

List an added sweetener

0of 1 labels

List a seed oil

0of 1 labels

Typical label length

2ingredients (median)

Counts use complete, current ingredient labels only. Records without a published label stay unknown and are never counted as clean.

What to compare

• Plain or flavored. Plain versions have the shortest lists; flavors add sugar, oils and seasoning.
• Sodium per cake. Compare mg per serving.
• Variety. Rotate rice snacks with other grains to vary exposure to arsenic.
• Organic claim. USDA Organic covers farming practices but not heavy-metal content.

References

1. Reducing the risk from arsenic in rice Consumer Reports
2. Arsenic in food and dietary supplements U.S. Food and Drug Administration
3. Sodium in your diet U.S. Food and Drug Administration
4. Organic labeling and what the USDA Organic seal means USDA Agricultural Marketing Service