Grab any bag of veggie chips from the health food aisle, and you'd be forgiven for thinking you're making a smart snack choice. They've got pictures of broccoli on the front. They use words like "natural" and "plant-based." But are veggie chips healthy – or is the packaging doing all the heavy lifting? Here's what the research actually says, and what to look for the next time you're standing in the snack aisle.
Quick Answers
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Most mainstream veggie chips in Australia are nutritionally similar to regular potato chips, with the same kilojoules, often more sodium
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A Cancer Council WA audit of 84 veggie chip products found 69% exceeded 400mg of sodium per 100g – the threshold for unacceptable salt levels
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The big exception: how the chip is made. Freeze-dried veggie chips are a genuinely different product from fried ones
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What to look for: short ingredient list, real whole vegetables as the base, sodium under 400mg per 100g, no vegetable powders or starches listed first
What Are Veggie Chips, Exactly?
The term "veggie chip" covers a pretty wide range of products. On one end, you've got chips made by slicing or pureeing real vegetables ( beetroot, broccoli, sweet potato, carrot) and then cooking or drying them. Then you've got products made primarily from potato starch or corn flour with a small amount of vegetable powder added, then fried and labelled "veggie" because of that token addition.
The front of the pack won't tell you which category a product falls into. The ingredients list will.
Are Veggie Chips Healthy? What Australian Research Found
In 2024, Cancer Council WA's LiveLighter team audited 84 different veggie chip products from the two major Australian supermarket chains. The findings were pretty clear: 69% of those products contained more than 400mg of sodium per 100g – the level they define as unacceptable.
Beyond salt, many products also had high levels of saturated fat and added sugar. LiveLighter's assessment? Most veggie chips are ultra-processed, not a substitute for actual vegetables, and shouldn't be marketed as health food.
That lines up with independent dietitian analysis from Foodwatch, which compared popular Australian veggie chips with regular potato chips and found kilojoule counts were nearly identical – sometimes only 50–100 kJ lower per 100g.
So no, most veggie chips are not healthy in any meaningful sense. But there's an important asterisk.
Are Dried Vegetable Chips Healthy? It Depends How They're Made
Not all veggie chips are made the same way, and the production method significantly changes their nutrition.
Frying (even in sunflower or canola oil) adds fat and can destroy heat-sensitive vitamins and antioxidants. Extrusion (the process that puffs and shapes most chip-style snacks) uses high heat and pressure, which also degrades nutrients. What comes out the other side often has very little in common with the vegetable it started as.
Freeze-drying is a different process entirely. The vegetable is frozen, and then water is removed under vacuum at low temperatures – no heat involved. Published research found that freeze-drying is the best method for retaining bioactive compounds in plant-based foods, because the absence of heat and liquid water protects nutrients throughout the process. Multiple studies show freeze-dried vegetables retain 90–97% of their original nutrients – far above hot-air drying, which can lose 40–60% of heat-sensitive vitamins.
For snacking specifically, that means freeze-dried carrot or broccoli crisps made from whole vegetables are genuinely different to a fried "veggie chip" made from corn starch with added carrot powder. Same category name, very different product.
Are Veggie Fries Healthy?
The same rules apply to veggie fries. Most commercially available veggie fries are made from potato or pea flour, shaped into sticks, and fried or baked. They're lower in calories than regular hot chips, but they're also lower in actual vegetable content. Eating a serving of veggie fries doesn't contribute meaningfully to your daily vegetable intake – and the sodium count is often just as high as regular fries.
If the first ingredient is a starch or flour rather than a whole vegetable, that's your answer.
What to Actually Look for on the Label
When you're choosing a veggie chip or crisp for yourself or as a healthy snack for kids, these are the things worth checking:
Look for:
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A real vegetable as the first (or only) ingredient – e.g., broccoli, beetroot, carrot, sweet potato
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Sodium under 400mg per 100g
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A short, readable ingredients list with no numbers or words you'd need to Google
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No added vegetable powders or starches as the base
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Freeze-dried or air-dried rather than fried
Watch out for:
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"Vegetable flavour" or "vegetable powder" near the top of the ingredients list
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Sodium above 400mg per 100g
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Palm oil (high in saturated fat)
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Long lists of flavour enhancers, emulsifiers, or preservatives
A Genuinely Better Snack Option
Most veggie chips aren't as healthy as they look, but that doesn't mean all veggie chips are equal. Check the method, check the sodium, and check whether there's a real vegetable anywhere near the top of the ingredients list. The answer to "Are veggie chips healthy?" mostly comes down to what's actually in the bag.
If you're after veggie chips that are actually made from vegetables (not potato flour with a sprinkle of pea powder) freeze-dried options are worth considering. Shary's mixed veggie crisps made from real vegetables are freeze-dried from whole vegetables with no added nasties, making them a meaningfully different product to the average supermarket "health food aisle" chip. Vegan, gluten-free, and actually vegetable-forward – they're a solid option when the crunch craving hits.
FAQs
Do veggie chips count as a serve of vegetables?
Generally, no. While veggie chips are made from vegetables, the processing, cooking, and added ingredients mean they don't meet the Australian Dietary Guidelines' criteria for a standard vegetable serve. They can complement a balanced diet, but whole or minimally processed vegetables should still make up the bulk of your daily intake.
Are veggie chips good for kids' lunchboxes?
Veggie chips can be a practical lunchbox option, especially compared to regular potato chips.
Look for varieties lower in sodium and saturated fat, with no artificial colours or flavours. They work best as an occasional treat alongside more nutritious whole foods like fruit, dairy, and protein-rich options.
Are veggie chips good for weight loss?
They can be a smarter swap than regular chips if you're watching your weight, but they're still an energy-dense snack. Portion size matters, and even healthier chips add up quickly. Pairing a small serve with high-fibre or protein-rich foods can help keep you fuller for longer.
Are veggie chips safe for diabetics?
Most veggie chips are lower on the glycaemic index than standard potato chips, but they still contain carbohydrates that can affect blood sugar levels. People managing diabetes should check the nutrition panel, keep portions small, and ideally pair them with a protein or fibre source to slow glucose absorption.
What are the healthiest veggie chips at Coles and Woolworths?
Look for options with simple ingredient lists, lower sodium (under 400mg per 100g), minimal saturated fat, and no artificial additives. Brands like Cobs, Eat Real, and The Better Chip are worth comparing with online options like Shary. Always check the per-serve nutrition panel rather than relying on front-of-pack marketing claims.