The Hero Snacks’ mission has always been to give back to the heroes who serve our communities. They are proud to partner with and support the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation through sales of Hero Snacks. National Fallen Firefighters Foundation’s mission is to honor and remember America’s fallen fire heroes, provide resources to assist their families in rebuilding their lives and work within the fire service community to reduce firefighter deaths and injuries.
Hero Jerky offers a line of premium beef, pork, and turkey jerky made from fresh, never frozen cuts. Their jerky is known for bold flavors, including options like Jalapeño Lime, Honey Habanero, and Black Cherry. The company has roots in the meat production industry since the 1960s and aims to honor everyday heroes through its products. This Hero Jerky brand is distributed under the name Golden Valley Natural and is located in Shelley, Idaho.
The first review on Hero Jerky will focus on a 10 ounce/284 gram bag of Cracked Black Pepper flavored beef jerky. This bag was purchased at a gas station in Bakersfield, California.
Ingredient Review
Ingredients: Beef, Brown Sugar, Water, Salt, Contains 2% or less: Sea Salt, Cultured Celery Powder, Natural Flavors, Spices.
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 liquid marinade is comprised of just water.
The only healthy ingredient added is spices.
The sugar level is sky high at 10 grams of sugar per 28 grams of jerky to lose a rating. Our preference is 3 grams of sugar or under per 28 grams of jerky. The salt level is high at 590mg of salt per 28 grams of jerky. However, the salt level is ignored because healthy, minimally processed sea salt is added.
This jerky does qualify to have no sodium nitrite or other similar unhealthy preservatives. Instead, the main preservative used is salt. Admirably, there is no MSG added.
Decent (7/10) – Ingredient Rating
Taste Review
HERO JERKY – CRACKED BLACK PEPPER BEEF JERKY
Written by guest jerky reviewer Paul Rekker
When I open the bag I smell what I believe to be vinegar. Apparently, it is processed beef I am smelling. There are two large pieces, which are sliced quite thick. The jerky is not soft, not rigid, somewhat near to what our forefathers intended. It is dry, and there is no oily residue left on your fingers.
When I bite into the jerky, I immediately taste salt at a decent level. It’s sweet and too intense for me, but we’ll soldier on. The cracked black pepper flavor is coming through in spades, right up my alley because I absolutely love pepper flavor. As I eat more of the jerky I am actually picking up on the processed beef flavor, which is not ideal, but it is passable.
This jerky is alluring to me because of the intense cracked black pepper flavor, but I am somewhat deterred by the almost equally intense sweet flavor, along with the processed beef flavor. With a clear conscience, I cannot award any higher than an 8/10, simply due to the two issues listed earlier.
Here is what Mark had to say about this Cracked Black Pepper beef jerky flavor from Hero Jerky: “Thanks Paul for the candid taste review. It is hard to disagree with anything stated. The excessive sweetness seems unneeded and, with my bias, unwanted. I immediately picked up on a processed beef flavor when I opened the bag. That smell also translated to the taste of processed beef, arguably at a passable level, as stated by Paul.”
“I agree with Paul that the cracked black pepper comes across well, which is also among my favorites. While the overall taste profile is well-balanced, with the sweetness notwithstanding, it is a fairly simple taste profile. With Paul at an 8 rating and myself at a 7 rating due to my dislike of processed tasting beef, a Good (8/10) taste rating will be awarded.”
This 10 ounce/113 gram bag of jerky sells for $17.99, which equates to $1.80 an ounce. That rates as a cheap price.
Bag Review
This professional looking resealable bag has everything imprinted to the front and back. There is a high quality picture of a firefighter on the front. A Golden Valley logo is displayed. The front displays another high quality picture of various ingredients. A dental flosser is provided in the bag.
A slogan printed on this bag is “Heroic Flavor”. Some facts printed are “Tender & Tasty Beef”, “11G Protein”, “Certified Gluten Free”, “Proud to Support Firefighter Organizations”, “Proudly Supporting Fire Heroes”, “Made in USA”, and “Naturally Smoked”.
All bag categories are covered. You are encouraged to follow Hero JerkyHero Jerky on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. A QR code is displayed linking to the Hero Journey.
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