The Old Dutch brand name was launched in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada way back in 1954 as a little potato chip company. Since 1954, their windmill logo has stood for quality/trust, old world charm, and a desire to create a long-lasting chip and snack tradition. In 2004, Old Dutch acquired the Humpty Dumpty snack company to give them national exposure across Canada. Old Dutch states that they were first company to claim 0 trans fat, and low in saturated fatty acid products. It is unknown which private labeler manufactures this jerky. Old Dutch is distributed by Old Dutch Foods Ltd., and they are still located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada today.
The first review on Old Dutch will focus on a 0.5 ounce/15 gram bag of their chopped and formed Original flavored beef jerky. This bag was purchased at a Dollar Tree store in Brampton, Ontario, Canada.
Ingredient Review
Ingredients: Beef, Salt, Sugar, Monosodium Glutamate, Spice, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Dextrose, Sodium Erythorbate, Garlic Powder, Yeast Extract, Sodium Nitrite, Maltodextrin, Natural Smoke Flavor. Allergen Warnings: Soy
The beef used is not guaranteed to be free of growth hormones or additional antibiotics. Also, the beef is not guaranteed to have at least partial free range access to graze on grass. As a result, the highest ingredient rating that can be awarded is a Good (8/10) rating.
The texture of this jerky is chopped and formed. As a result, without having a natural whole muscle sliced strip of jerky, two ingredient ratings are deducted.
The only healthy ingredients listed are spice (probably black pepper) and garlic powder.
There is no nutrition facts table provided. As a result, the exact sugar and salt level are unknown. Based on taste alone, the salt level is 100% for sure above our preferred limit of 350mg of salt or less per 28 grams of jerky to lose a rating.
This jerky does not qualify to have no sodium nitrite as sodium nitrite is used outright as a preservative, along with sodium erythorbate also to lose a rating.
This jerky does not qualify to have no MSG added as monosodium glutamate (MSG) is used outright to lose a rating. The unhealthy, cheap, highly processed flavor enhancer hydrolyzed soy protein is used to lose another rating.
Very Bad (2/10) – Ingredient Rating
Taste Review
This uniformly sized 15 gram chopped and formed jerky strip is rectangular in shape, and sliced thin. The texture is soft and tender, being easy to chew. Handling this strip does leave an oily residue on your fingers. There is little to no aroma in this jerky strip.
The first taste detected is a moderately strong level of saltiness. Other flavors that start to take shape are a light garlic flavor, a light tasting sweetness, and a mild level of soy. The flavor finishes off with a subtle smoked flavor in the background.
After eating around 3/4 of this strip quickly, the intense level of saltiness gets to be almost unbearable. This may be the saltiest tasting jerky that we have reviewed to date in six years with near 700 jerky reviews published to date.
As with most jerky that uses monosodium glutamate (MSG), the overall flavor is strong tasting. Nobody could ever accuse this jerky of being tasteless. Perhaps bland or boring tasting though with no resemblance of anything tasting fresh.
As expected with a chopped and formed texture, the beef tastes rather processed with little natural beef flavor present.
Stéphane was not entirely impressed with this to say: “This Old Dutch ‘Beef Jerky’/Meaty like substance strip is tasty and generally tastes fine. The issue that I am having is that it does not feel or taste like quality meat. The texture is somewhat spongy and not really a turn on and it is far too oily to be really enjoyable. In short, it tastes and looks more like a dog treat than anything else. I would certainly not buy this product or recommend it to anyone. I’d be inclined in rating a 6/10. I may attribute this vagary to my still being in a joyous and celebratory spirit.”
Paul being a salt fiend was more complimentary on this flavor: “The first flavors that I detect are salt, pepper, soy, garlic and a bit of a tang. Not spicy, just tang. The salt, pepper and MSG are the dominant flavors. While I realize we here at Jerky Ingredients tend to endorse healthy jerky over unhealthy jerky, I am still inclined to give this jerky an 8/10, even though MSG is not only unhealthy, but also, in my opinion, a form of cheating. MSG does naturally enhance most anything, but I am also asked to be honest, and honestly, this jerky is tasty enough to warrant an 8/10.”
True, this is tasty jerky but not exactly for the right reasons. From a health perspective, we cannot recommend this flavor, and certainly not even to your pet dog. From a taste perspective, you need to be a fan of a chopped and formed texture, plus extreme saltiness.
This 0.5 ounce/15 gram bag of jerky cost $1.25. That works out to 67 cents an ounce, which rates as an unworldly rock bottom cheap price. Yes, this is dollar store type of jerky that continues to improve over the years in regards to taste but not quality, or at least yet.
Bag Review
This non-resealable bag has everything printed directly on to the front with no labels affixed. The Old Dutch logo is a Dutch windmill. This bag is vacuum sealed, the best way to keep jerky fresh tasting.
There are no slogans printed on this bag. The only fact printed on this bag is “Chopped And Formed”.
The only missing bag categories are displaying the company web site and a nutrition facts table. As per Canadian law, there are French translations provided. To the credit of Old Dutch, a toll free phone is provided for customer inquiries.
Hello id like to order some of your amazing jerky at least 4 boxes worth could you tell me how I go about ordering it from u