The Great Canadian Meat Company shortened their brand name to Great Canadian Meat, and they were founded in 1992 as a two-man operation. With their deli line and jerky, Great Canadian Meat has grown to become one of the largest lines of meat snacks in Canada. It is a fairly common sight to see Great Canadian Meat beef jerky for sale in Ontario convenience stores.
Great Canadian Meat has continually strived to create one of Canada’s premier snack food experiences, and they pride themselves on being a Canadian company using the finest Canadian ingredients whenever possible. They source their pork from Quebec and their beef from Western Canada – ensuring the purest of meats from within our borders. They pride themselves on processing through a federally inspected, HACCP-approved, state-of-the-art facility. They’re solidifying their role as a truly Canadian company producing high-quality, tasty meat snacks for their valued customers. This jerky is distributed by The Great Canadian Meat Company, who are located in Whitby, Ontario, Canada.
The next jerky review will focus on a 2.4 ounce/68 gram bag of sweet heat beef jerky from Great Canadian Meat. The jerky was kindly submitted for review by Director of Marketing Nicholas Gerald.
Ingredient Review
Ingredients: Beef, Water, Apple Juice, Sea Salt, Soy Sauce, Cider Vinegar, Cane Sugar, Brown Sugar, Dextrose, Natural Flavours, Spices, Molasses, Garlic, Yeast Extract, Sodium Ascorbate, Sodium Nitrite, Smoke Allergen Warnings: Soy
The beef sourced from Alberta 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 liquid marinade is comprised of water, healthy apple juice, an unknown brand of soy sauce, and super healthy apple cider vinegar.
There are some healthy ingredients added such as spices and garlic.
The sugar level is high at 7 grams of sugar per 23 grams of jerky to lose a rating. Our preference is 5 grams of sugar or under per 28 grams of jerky for a sweet based flavour as we have here. The salt level is sort of high at 349mg of salt per 23 grams of jerky. However, the sodium level is ignored because healthy, minimally processed sea salt is added instead of highly processed table salt.
This jerky does not qualify to have no sodium nitrate as sodium nitrite is used outright to lose a rating. Admirably, this jerky qualifies to have no MSG added.
Alright (6/10) – Ingredient Rating
Taste Review
GREAT CANADIAN MEAT – SWEET HEAT BEEF JERKY
Written by guest jerky reviewer Paul Rekker
When I open the bag I smell soy. The pieces vary in size, from small to medium to large. The jerky is medium in thickness, it has a dark hue, it is medium soft and chewy, and there is no oily residue left on your fingers handling these jerky strips.
The first flavours I encounter are salt, at a high level (personal bias), sweet, which is at a decent level, pepper, garlic, at a light level, and some heat, not very spicy, but noticeable.
This jerky tastes pretty good, but it is lacking in the “Wow!!” factor. Plus, neither the sweet nor the heat is taking center stage here, which is kind of to be expected with a “sweet heat” flavour.
Overall, a decent flavour, maybe better than decent, but not a “home run” flavour. I would rate it somewhere between an 7 or a 8/10, I am comfortable with either. Gentlemen?
Here is what Mark had to say about this sweet heat beef jerky flavor from Great Canadian Meat: “Thanks Paul for the honest taste review. I agree with everything that you stated. This is a pleasant tasting flavour but nothing spectacular stands out. The sweetness is definitely present and there is a light kick to this flavour. A Good (8/10) taste rating will be awarded.”
This 2.4 ounce/68 gram bag of jerky sells online for cost $5.50. That works out to $2.29 an ounce, which rates as a cheap price.
Bag Review
This professional-looking resealable plastic bag has everything imprinted directly on the bag, both on the front and back. There are no labels affixed to this bag. The Great Canadian Meat logo has a red maple leaf.
Their slogans are “Genuine Jerky” and “Eat Some Energy”. Some facts printed on this bag are “Low in Fat”, “High in Protein”, “9g Protein”, “Gluten Free”, “Made in Canada”, and “Canadian GCMC25”.
All bag categories are covered with this bag. A good blurb is printed on the back about Great Canadian Meat jerky. In accordance with Canadian law, there are French translations provided.
Excellent (10/10) – Bag Rating
Order their jerky online: www.greatcanadianmeat.com
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