Is Greens Powder Worth It? An Honest Look

Is greens powder worth it? It is a fair question for a product that can cost more per month than a bag of vegetables, and the answer depends on what you expect it to do.

Short answer: a greens powder is worth it if you want a quick, consistent way to add a mix of plant foods to your day and you will actually use it. It is not worth it if you expect it to replace vegetables or fix a specific nutrient shortfall. Judge it on its ingredient list and its price per serve, not on the claims on the front of the tub.

What you actually get in a scoop

A greens powder is dried, milled plant food. A typical scoop of 5 to 10 g gives you a small amount of a lot of different plants, plus a little protein and fibre. You get variety and convenience in a form that keeps for months in the pantry.

What you do not get is volume. A standard serve of vegetables in the Australian Dietary Guidelines is 75 g, about half a cup of cooked vegetables or a cup of salad.¹ A scoop of powder weighs a fraction of that, and it does not fill you up the way a plate of vegetables does.

Can greens powder replace vegetables?

No, and no honest brand should say it can. Use it as an addition to your meals, not a substitute for them. The people who get the most from a greens powder are those who already eat reasonably well and want an easy extra, or those who know they eat few plant foods and want a starting point.

That second group is large. Fewer than one in ten Australian adults eat the recommended daily serves of vegetables.²

When is greens powder worth it?

• You will take it every day. A jar that sits in the cupboard is the worst value of all. See when to take greens powder for how to make it a habit.
• You want variety. Buying eight separate powders to get eight plant foods is expensive and fiddly. A blend does it in one jar.
• You are busy or travel a lot. A powder keeps without refrigeration and packs flat.
• You like the taste, or you have found something to mix it into that you enjoy. See what to mix greens powder with.

When it is not worth it

• You expect it to replace a meal or a multivitamin. See greens powder vs multivitamin.
• You are buying it because of a health claim on the tub. Buy it for what is in it.
• The price per serve is high and the ingredient list is vague.

How to tell a good greens powder from a poor one

1. Read the ingredient list, in order. Ingredients are listed from largest to smallest. If the first few are cheap fillers, sweeteners or flavours, the plants you are paying for are further down.
2. Watch for proprietary blends. A "blend" with one combined weight hides how much of each ingredient is in it.
3. Check the serve size and the serves per jar. Then work out the price per serve.
4. Look at what it is sweetened with. Some powders add sugar or several sweeteners to hide the taste.
5. Look at where it is packed. Algae in particular should come from a supplier that tests its product.³

What it costs

Greens powders in Australia range widely in price. A useful benchmark is the price per serve. Ours works out at under $2 a serve for a single jar, and less with a multi-pack.

What we make

Our daily superfood powder is a blend of eight superfoods: cacao, goji berry, green barley grass, spirulina, beetroot, acai berry, cracked cell chlorella and camu camu. One serve is 7 g (3 slightly rounded teaspoons), there are 30 serves in a 210 g jar, and it is vegan, dairy free and non-GMO. It is packed in Brendale, Queensland, and delivered anywhere in Australia.

The ingredients are listed in order on the jar, with no proprietary blend, and cacao is the largest single ingredient.

Frequently asked questions

Are greens powders a waste of money?

Only if you do not use them, or expect them to do something they cannot. As a convenient daily addition of plant foods, they do what they say.

Are greens powders ultra processed?

A good one is dried and milled whole plants, which is minimal processing, similar to dried herbs. Read the ingredient list: the more flavours, sweeteners and additives, the more processed it is.

How long does a jar last?

Check the serves per jar. Ours has 30 serves, so it lasts a month at one scoop a day.

About the author

Grant Jenkins is a director of Propel Health Australia and an Accredited Exercise Physiologist. Our range is packed in a licensed facility in Brendale, Queensland. Every figure quoted for our product in this article is the figure on our printed label.

References

1. National Health and Medical Research Council. Australian Dietary Guidelines. Canberra: NHMRC; 2013. eatforhealth.gov.au
2. Australian Bureau of Statistics. Dietary behaviour, 2022. abs.gov.au
3. Roy-Lachapelle A, Solliec M, Bouchard MF, Sauvé S. Detection of cyanotoxins in algae dietary supplements. Toxins. 2017;9(3):76.

Disclaimer

This article is general information, not medical advice. Speak to your healthcare provider before starting any new supplement, especially if you are pregnant, taking medication or have a medical condition.