M &S may have started something with its Munch tins, but ASDA is coming for their festive snacking crown with a much cheaper alternative to the viral and much-loved treat. The supermarket's brand-new Merry Munch Mix has already been causing a stir among shoppers, and at £3.35 for a 330g bag, it's a pretty compelling Christmas buy.
The mix includes everything we want from a festive movie-night snack: sweet, salty, crunchy and chocolatey, all in the one bag. You'll find milk chocolate popcorn, white chocolate honeycomb, salted pretzel knots, green chocolate pretzel balls and red chocolate fudge, giving you plenty of different textures and flavours to pick through.
And that's where we think ASDA's version really holds its own against M&S. The Very Merry Munch costs £10 for 460g, working out at around £2.17 per 100g, while ASDA's is roughly £1.02 per 100g. That means ASDA's mix is more than 50% cheaper per 100g, making it a very tempting option if you're feeding a crowd this Christmas.
M&S does have one advantage: its Very Merry Munch comes in a lovely reusable tin, which makes it feel instantly more giftable. ASDA's version comes in a plastic sharing bag, but let's be honest – we're probably going to tip it straight into our prettiest Christmas serving bowl anyway.
ASDA says the 330g bag serves up to 12 people, making it ideal for putting out during a festive film marathon or games night with friends, and for the price we're not surprised people are excited by it. M&S might have the fancy tin, but ASDA's Merry Munch Mix gives you that same sweet-and-savoury festive snacking experience for a fraction of the price – and once it's in a bowl, who's going to know the difference?
Mel is the Senior Food & Drink Writer for Good Housekeeping UK, covering all the delicious new product launches that come her way, writing about food and drink topics, and curating gift guides for the best foodie products to buy. Alongside that, she can be found developing and creating cocktails for GH and holds her WSET Level 2 in Wine and Spirits. She was part of the Good Housekeeping Institute food testing team for over four years before moving over to the digital side, so knows a thing or two about great food products. You'll find her scouring the supermarket shelves in her spare time for new and exciting ingredients to experiment with in her kitchen.