Today marks the launch of a new challenger brand in the children’s snacking category. Jungle Squad Cake Bars enter the market with a clear purpose – to deliver a flavoursome treat with significantly less sugar, and without compromising on taste. Reflecting growing pressure on the category to evolve beyond high-sugar formulations.
Imaginakery, the business on a mission to help parents and children combine lower sugar foods with entertainment-led experiences, has launched Jungle Squad cake bars. The everyday, lower sugar bars are now available in 654 Tesco stores nationwide – an unusually large rollout for a new entrant in the healthier snacking category.
The brand has been developed by Mark Simester, whose career spans senior roles at Nestlé, Warburtons and Soreen, where he led the repositioning of the brand into a healthier lunchbox staple.
At the heart of these children friendly snack bars is a clear nutritional point of difference, that doesn’t sacrifice on the fun and excitement of a sweet treat. Each Jungle Squad cake bar contains just 3.2g of sugar, approximately 60% less than the average cake bar and more than three times less than most leading brands, without the use of added syrups or artificial sweeteners. At 89 calories per bar, the product is designed to offer a more balanced option for lunchboxes and everyday snacking occasions.
Launching in scrumptious strawberry and lip-smacking lemon flavour, the pack of five individually wrapped cake bars appeal to both parents and children, and are suitable for lunchboxes, after-school snacks and on-the-go activities. The intention is not to reposition cake as an occasional treat, but to provide a lower sugar alternative that can fit more easily into daily routines.
Founder of Imaginakery, Mark Simester has spent more than 30 years working at the heart of the UK food industry and believes the problem is not a lack of effort from parents but rather a category that has failed to evolve.
Mark said: “The children’s snack category is broken, and parents are being left to navigate it alone. There’s a clear gap between what parents want and what the category currently offers. Too many products are still high in sugar, and too many healthier options feel like a compromise. Jungle Squad is about closing that gap, creating something that works for parents, but is driven by what children actually want.
“Switching from confectionary style cake bars to Jungle Squad can incredibly save a child eating 3kg of sugar in one year!”
What sets Jungle Squad apart, however, is not just its nutritional credentials. The brand has been developed to address a long-standing challenge within the category, that healthier options often fail to resonate with children themselves.
Each pack is integrated into a wider entertainment ecosystem, including collectible trading cards, a free augmented reality app and a dedicated YouTube series. The aim is to shift purchasing dynamics, creating a product that children actively engage with and request, rather than one positioned purely as a parental compromise.
The launch comes at a time when pressure on HFSS categories and growing consumer awareness around sugar intake are driving demand for reformulated products that can still compete on taste, familiarity and convenience.
The scale of the Tesco rollout reflects increasing retailer appetite for products that combine improved nutritional credentials with strong consumer engagement, particularly in categories where innovation has historically been limited.
Mark added: “This isn’t about removing treats, it’s about making better everyday choices easier. If small swaps can reduce sugar intake over time, the impact for families can be tremendous.”
Jungle Squad cake bars are now available in Tesco stores nationwide.
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