What is COMP?
There is a food product called "COMP," which is a complete food.
I think "complete food" is a coined term.The meaning is roughly "a food that you can survive on if you only eat this."Probably.
This food product is designed to meet all the daily nutritional requirements set by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare for adults.
I was originally interested in a complete food called "Soylent" when it became a hot topic and made headlines in the United States around 2013.
Considering that the name "Soylent" is derived from the sci-fi movie "Soylent Green," which it's based on, it doesn't seem like a very good name...
This is a line that I remember as a traumatic scene in the PS game "Xenogears."
Putting that aside, Soylent was appealing because you could get all the necessary nutrients just by dissolving the powder and drinking it, which meant it didn't take much time and was inexpensive.
However, since it wasn't available for purchase in Japan, I never bought it and had completely forgotten about it until recently.
However, in 2015, a company called "COMP Co., Ltd." in Japan began selling products with a similar concept.
Since it was developed domestically, unlike Soylent, it should be optimized for Japanese people, which made me even more interested.
Since there's a trial pack available, I felt it would be easy to try it out before purchasing, which is why I decided to buy it this time.
(The image above is from the handbook included with the COMP.)
COMP complete food
Types and costs of COMP
COMP has three different product lines.
It comes in powder form that dissolves in liquid, chewy gummy form, and ready-to-drink beverage form that you simply pour.
The powder type comes in a pack of 12 for 5000 yen (tax included).(Approximately 416 yen per serving: 400 kcal)The gummy type is 4750 yen for 10 packs.(475 yen per serving: 400 kcal)The drink type comes in a 6-pack for 7,410 yen.(1 pack per liter: 1235 yen; 1000 kcal)is.
To be honest, I can't deny that it feels a little overpriced.
The trial pack contains three powder packs and two gummy packs for 1000 yen, making it arguably the most economical option.
If you're interested, it's probably best to start with this trial pack.
It seems there are no trial sizes available for the drink type.
My impressions after actually eating COMP
Drink type
First, I tried the drink type, which is easy to consume.
It has almost no smell, but it has a slightly thick consistency, like soy milk.
As for the taste, the first sip tastes like soy milk, but the aftertaste is like coffee creamer, with a slight nutty flavor.
If you ask me if I could gulp this down on its own, I personally feel that it would require some "restraint."
I use it for breakfast, sprinkling it on granola.
I felt there was potential for it to be interesting when mixed with strongly flavored drinks.
Coffee might be interesting.
Powder type
The powder type needs to be dissolved in a liquid before drinking, but it's okay to dissolve it in anything.
It dissolves in both cold and hot water, but it's probably best to avoid using hot water as it may destroy heat-sensitive nutrients.
Since it uses cinnamon extract, those who dislike the smell of cinnamon should be aware of this.
It has a subtle sweetness, but I think it would be easier to drink if mixed with something sweeter.
Based on various reviews, it seems that it tastes better when dissolved in strong-flavored fruit juices or coffee.
Indeed, I have had the experience in the past where mixing protein powder with water resulted in a strong, distinctive taste that wasn't very pleasant.
Since it dissolves easily in anything, I thought it might be a good idea to use a liquid with a somewhat strong flavor as a base to mask the taste of COMP itself.
Smoothies and similar drinks are naturally thick and have a strong flavor, so they are apparently easy to drink.
This time, I used Lipton lemon tea that I bought at a convenience store and made a shaker out of a suitable container I had lying around the house.
I thought the container was too small to hold any lemon tea, but as I poured it in, it didn't clump as much as I expected.
It dissolved smoothly when I shook the container, so I felt that it dissolved quite well.
As for the taste with the lemon tea, surprisingly, it was quite palatable.
Since COMP has a soy milk-like taste, it might not have been a good match for lemon tea in the first place.
The taste was similar to soy milk lemon tea, but the refreshing lemon flavor seemed to overpower the other flavors.
However, it seems to be a lemon-flavored shake, and the taste itself could be described as "ordinary."
It looks like we'll need to experiment with various things in this area.
(Further down, I've also written my impressions of mixing it with unsweetened coffee.)
Gummy type
The gummy type comes in a resealable pack, so it's okay if you don't eat them all at once.
The mango flavor was very strong, and it was fruity and delicious.
This can be eaten like regular candy.
However, it has a fairly firm texture, so you need to chew it thoroughly.
When I chew it finely, it gets stuck in the gaps between my teeth, which is a bit of a concern.
It doesn't stick to your teeth particularly stubbornly, so I don't think it's much of a problem.
However, if you were to eat a whole pack of these gummies for breakfast, it would be quite difficult because they are so chewy.
I think it's good because you can chew it like gum while eating it, which is helpful when you're doing something else.
I think this gummy type is the most likely to be accepted by the average person.
Tips for dissolving powder type
Drink and gummy types are easy to use as you just eat them as is, but powder types require some technique.
You could buy a shaker, but some people might find washing it a hassle.
The method I recommend is using a funnel with a plastic bottle.
If you use a plastic bottle as a shaker, you can simply rinse it lightly after use and then throw it away.
After purchasing the drink you want to use as a base, drink about half of it, insert a funnel, add the powder, put the cap on, and shake.
With just this, you can easily dissolve it in various drinks and enjoy it.
Of course, I think it's also perfectly fine to put a different drink into an empty plastic bottle.
You can probably buy these kinds of funnels for plastic bottles at 100-yen shops (I bought mine on Amazon for a few hundred yen).
Since funnels need to be washed, it's best to choose one with a shape that's easy to clean.
It's very difficult to pour COMP powder into a plastic bottle through the opening without using a funnel.
COMP powder is smooth but slightly slippery, so the powder won't flow out until you tilt the bag to a certain extent.
And if you tilt the bag a little, the contents suddenly collapse and spill out in a gush, causing the powder to spill out.
When you pour the contents into a funnel while gently shaking the bag, it falls through smoothly like sand in an hourglass.
If you pour too much in at once, it will clog, so hold the funnel in one hand and pour while shaking it.
Naturally, if you put the liquid in first, the powder will stick to the funnel, so use a thoroughly dry funnel and put the powder in first.
The photo shows the coffee grounds being poured in, followed by the addition of unsweetened coffee.
At this point, it looks messy and not very appetizing.
However, it dissolves completely if you put the lid on and shake it.
There may be a few clumps remaining at the bottom of the plastic bottle, but it's within acceptable limits.
Incidentally, when mixed with unsweetened coffee, it tasted like "liquid unsweetened chocolate cookies," and I lost interest halfway through.
It might have been easier to drink if it had been sweetened coffee.
There will inevitably be a slight powdery texture, which may be unpleasant for those who dislike that.
It has a similar texture to the drinkable version of CalorieMate.
Problems with COMP
I've written several reviews, but I feel that COMP has a few problems.
First, the cost is high.
I think it's fine to market it as a "complete food," but I think the cost is too high when you replace all your regular meals with it.
Since I'm a man, my daily calorie requirement is approximately 2200 kcal.Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries websiteby)
In that case, since one pack of the powder type contains 400 kcal, you would need enough for 5 to 6 servings.
Therefore, the food expenses would amount to 2,000 to 2,400 yen per day, which feels a bit expensive.
Even considering the time costs involved in sourcing ingredients and preparing the food, I think it's still just barely overpriced.
The second issue is the problem of chewing less.
If you use it in combination with a gummy type, you might not need to worry about it too much.
If you only consume COMP powder, you'll end up just drinking it instead of eating, which reduces the amount of chewing you do.
The act of chewing strengthens the jaw muscles and stimulates saliva production.
Furthermore, some believe that eating a variety of foods stimulates the brain and helps prevent its decline.
It cannot be denied that a reduction in such physical stimulation could potentially have negative health effects in the future.
However, since there is no long-term data on people who have lived solely on COMP, we can only wait for more data to accumulate.
However, in terms of nutritional value, you can get enough of the nutrients that are usually difficult to obtain.
I suspect that people who have been taking nutritional supplements may no longer need them.
In fact, I felt healthier during the week I replaced breakfast with this.
However, as mentioned in the precautions, I did notice that it slightly loosened my stomach.
This might be good for people who tend to be constipated.
summary
COMP is a food with excellent nutritional value.
However, it has a distinctive taste, so you'll need to be creative with how you eat it.
Furthermore, it will be slightly more expensive.
Therefore, in the current situation, a more realistic approach might be to replace just one meal with COMP, or to use it as a supplement to your diet, rather than replacing all meals with it.
In the end, it's not much different from a health supplement, so I can't recommend it to everyone.
If the cost could be reduced a little more, I think it would become a very attractive food product.
