In this review of Now Sports Pea Protein (chocolate flavor) I’ll give you everything you need to know in order to make a more informed choice whether this vegan protein powder is for you.
Chocoloate flavors are usually quite nice so I was looking forward to trying this protein powder out.
It’s also just pea protein which is a little different as most vegan/plant based protein powders are a blend of different proteins.
So I was curious if it made any difference to the taste and mixing ability.
Anyway let’s not keep you waiting and let’s get it into it.
So when reviewing this protein and others I always like to ask these questions to determine if it’s a winner in my eyes.
Those questions are…
Is it made from natural ingredients?
I want to see it made from things such as real fruits, vegetables, grains, and superfoods.
I definitely don’t want anything that’s a synthetic chemical or nonorganic.
Natural organic ingredients are always going to be a must if it’s a good protein powder.
Can you pronounce all the ingredients on the label?
This ties in with the last question. If you can’t understand the ingredients it probably isn’t a healthy option.
It’s best to keep it simple and leave the scientific jargon out of it.
What kind of tests were run on the product to prove label accuracy
and ingredient purity?
For example tests for heavy metals, banned substances in sports, gluten, GMO etc.
What kind of independent quality certifications does the product
have?
Is it USDA Organic, non-GMO, Vegan etc?
How does it taste?
Taste has got to be one of the most important things as it can be amazing in all departments but if it tastes gross then you’ll most likely never have it more than once.
With that said let’s start with a quick pro and con summary.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Good helping of Protein per serving (24g)
- Contains all essential amino acids
- Tastes great
- Soy-free
- Daily free
- GMO-Free
Cons
- Not organic
- Doesn’t contain nutrient dence ingrediants like some other brands.
What Does Now Sports Pea Protein Powder Taste Like?
Shake:
When mixed with Almond milk I thought it tasted really good. It was nice and chocolatey which I really enjoyed. Perfect for when coming straight out of the gym and you want to mix it with water or plant-based milk.
Smoothies:
For the smoothie, I mixed the powder with some frozen berries, bananas, and almond milk. Again I thought it tasted really nice. It wasn’t too sweet and it had no weird aftertaste.
Some protein powders can have a bit of an aftertaste because of the sweeteners used. This was fine and the flavor was good when combined with fruits in a smoothie.
This can be a little subjective but compared with other chocolate flavors I’ve had in smoothies it was defo nice.
Porridge:
With porridge, I thought it tasted nice and it mixed well. Sometimes depending on the texture of the powder, mixing it with oats in porridge can be not that great, however, this was fine.
Chocolate is a pretty versatile flavor and usually tastes quite nice in porridge in which this did.
Altogether the taste was good in every way that I tried it!
Video Review
Things That I Like About Now Sports Pea Protein Powder
The things I like about this protein powder is it’s taste really nice. Especially in a shake. Nice and chocolatey. Yummy!
I also like it has 24g of protein per serving which is pretty decent for a vegan protein powder. Most other brands are about 20-21g on average for a vegan protein powder.
It also has a decent serving of BCAA’s which is good.
There’s not too much I can say here apart from that if I’m honest.
The Not So Good Things
In terms of the not so good things, I would say it not being organic is one thing.
Also there’s not much added goodness included.
Some other brands such as Vivo Life add health-promoting ingredients such as Turmeric extract, Reishi mushroom, Digestive Enzymes (Ginger Extract, Papain, Peppermint Leaf & Fennel Seed) etc.
You’ll find that the better brands have the added premium ingredients that make a vegan protein better.
You usually pay a premium but it’s worth it in my eyes.
That’s about all I don’t like about this protein.
What’s In The Protein Powder?
The Now Sports Pea Protein has a pretty simple low ingredient base as you can see. It’s only got 7 ingredients.
Obviously Pea being the source of protein. Something to note is the ingredients are NON-GMO which is good.
Unfortunately the ingredients aren’t organic which is something I like to see.
Each serving is loaded with BCAA’s. You’ll get for a 1 scoop serving around 4,200 mg of branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) and over 2,000 mg of arginine.
Each serving as 24g of protein per serving which is pretty decent.
You’ll also get 160 calories per serving. That makes it one of the higher calories plant based proteins.
There’s also no artificial sweetness, meaning no Aspartame, no Sucralose, no Acesulfame-k.
It’s does however include Xylitol which is claimed to be natural but I would say that’s open for debate because of the chemical processes needed to turn natural xylitol into what we consume as a sweetener.
Even on the Now Sports website they have a warning about Xylitol.
Xylitol is harmful to pets; seek veterinary care immediately if ingestion is suspected.
Doesn’t sound too great. I’ll let you decide what you think about Xylotol.
Here’s a breakdown of the ingrediants.
Ingredients: Yellow Pea Protein Isolate, Cocoa Powder, Natural Flavors, Xylitol, Sea Salt, Organic Stevia Leaf Extract, Xanthan Gum, Stevia Leaf Extract (Rebaudioside A).
Here’s a picture which shows all the nutritional facts
Here’s the Amino Acid profile.
What Does Now Sports Pea Protein Get Tested For?
After having a good read of their site it seems they do care about their ingredients and test their products regularly at different levels of the manufacturing process for a variety of things.
The Now Sports pea protein is certified by Informed Sports which means they have been tested for a broad range of substances that are banned in sport by LGC, a globally recognized assurance program for anti-doping in sports nutrition products.
They also state on their website that NOW® tests all appropriate products to ensure that heavy metal levels are within nationally and globally recognized safe limits.
It’s important to know that anything grown in the ground will contain trace levels of heavy metals but it shouldn’t be anything to be concerned about.
There’s a lot of worry about heavy metals in plant based proteins but it’s completely normal to contain some trace levels.
The Cost & Best Place To Buy?
I purchased my 907g tub from the UK Amazon for £32.15. That works out at £1.54 per serving. That’s pretty much a bang in the middle range price for a plant-based protein powder.
I reviewed 15 vegan/plant-based protein powders and compared with the others it’s right in the middle of the uk price range.
The US Amazon price at the time of my purchase was $21.26 ($1.01 per serving) for the same size tub which makes it cheaper in the US than in the UK.
When comparing prices online Amazon seems to be the best place to buy it. On the Now Sports website, the same tub is advertised for $32.99 although currently out of stock as I write this.
Sometime it’s better to buy direct from the suppliers website as sometimes the suppliers have better deals and promos and sometimes it’s better to get from Amazon.
On this occasion Amazon seems to be the best place to purchase Now Sports Pea Protein.
Conclusion
Overall I would say this is an ok option if you want a vegan protein powder. It tastes good and has a good amount of protein per serving.
Apart from that there’s not too much else going for it.
There are plenty of other vegan protein powders which I think are better for the same kind of money. If you’re in USA then I would say Purely Inspired Organic Protein is a better option and it’s cheaper.
Click here to check it out on Amazon.
If you’re in the UK or the EU and don’t mind paying a bit extra then I would go for something more premium such as Vivo Life.
Click here to check out my Vivo Life Review.
Anyway, that’s it for this review of Now Sports Pea Protein. I hope it’s helped you. And feel free to leave a comment if there’s anything you want to say or suggest.
Thanks!
