Are you getting enough food and the necessary nutrition? These days, a meal kit subscription is a popular way to prepare meals at home. They carry ready, healthy, & affordable meals of different varieties in suitable fractions. It has gained acceptance since the idea hit the market in Stockholm in 2007.
Meal kits serve a pre-measured or sometimes partially prepared portion with recipes and instructions that help customers prepare their meals quickly. The customer can have a meal kit for an individual or the entire family.
Subscription business model
It is the most viable food service business model. Most meal kit delivery services run on a subscription model where customers pay a fixed service fee weekly or monthly for pre-portioned meals delivered to their doorsteps.
The Journey of meal kit subscription service has no looking back. In 2022, the Global Meal Kit Market extend to US$ 12 billion. The online food delivery business saw outstanding growth during the pandemic and is growing fast. It led to a subscription-based meal kit delivery service.
The hectic lives and prolific paying capacity have furthered the market for meal kits. Meal kit delivery services provide numerous benefits to customers, like personalization.
The subscription business model in the F & B industry provides good cash flow to the businesses and is growing at a rate of 300%.
The benefits of meal kit boxes for customers
- Portion control
- Easy access to fresh ingredients
- Less wastage of food
- Offers specialty diets (like vegan, vegetarian, paleo, or gluten-free) as well as low-calorie or low-carb options
- It saves time and hassle from going to the grocery store to meal planning
- It is cost-effective. Meal kits provide high-quality ingredients at affordable prices as you save money by buying only the quantity you need.
- Meal kits allow access to novel preparations without a significant investment in time or money.
- Customers in the 35-44 age band are the primary buyers of meal kits.
- The growing popularity of meal kit delivery and subscription market reach US$ 31 billion by 2030.
Best meal kit services in the United States
1. Blue Apron:
Blue Apron is the pioneer of meal kit subscription programs in the United States. It is a popular service providing a variety of vegetarian, seafood, and non-vegetarian options on the weekly menu. The boxes include pre-portioned sustainable ingredients.
You can select meal kits for vegetarians from their 70+ options to fit your lifestyle. A starter plan is best to begin with. You can choose the number of servings and meals per week.
Their app and website also provide wine bundles on a monthly subscription. You can check more market options by visiting them.
Cost: $9.49 per serving onwards
2. Home Chef:
Home Chef allows you to order tailor-made meals to your liking. They offer standard and premium meal kits that cater to 2 or 4 servings per week. It is a popular meal kit service that allows you to order a 5-minute lunch kit and 18 add-ons like a smoothie or fruit basket to your order. You can choose vegetarian or non-vegetarian from the 30 recipes offered every week.
The customization facility guides the home chef to your preferences and helps them customize it according to your taste. To make your cooking awesome, they deliver ingredients in special insulated boxes to ensure freshness with instructions to make home cooking a delight.
Cost: $7.99 per serving
3. HelloFresh:
One of the most beloved meal kit subscription services in the United States is undoubtedly HelloFresh. Its various plans are designed for families and even picky eaters. The meal kit service provides over 100 recipes every week to cater to its large customer base. It is good that they offer excellent meal kits for different cuisines and vegan, keto, low-carb, vegetarian, and gluten-free diet requirements.
The plans are affordable, and the portions are generous. You can select a subscription plan for 2 or 4 persons with the option of 2-6 meals per week. The app also offers a customization option on all subscription plans where you can alter, upgrade, or swap the recipes according to your preferences.
Cost: $5.99 per serving
4. Veestro:
The meal kit by Veestro is in line with the ready-to-serve plant-based meal. If you are looking for vegan food meal kits, check out their fresh menu of 100% vegan dishes prepared by in-house chefs. It eliminates the hassle of shopping, cleaning, chopping, and cooking.
If you want to try before subscribing, an a la carte plan is there to order a one-time meal.
Veestro’s weekly meal delivery subscription easily adapts to busy lifestyles. Their handcrafted meal prepared with fresh organic produce is shipped to add the convenience of getting vegan food. You only need to heat and enjoy your meal.
Veestro gives the flexibility to cancel or skip your subscription at any time.
Cost: $11.93 to $14.25 per serving
5. Purple Carrot:
This is a perfect plant-based meal kit delivery service popular in the US. They have an engaging menu for all three meals. You can choose from their 100% vegan recipes cooked in under 30 minutes and target special dietary requirements.
Offered at a good price, the dinner option gives you a choice of two or four servings per week. The vegetarian meal kit subscription menu is refreshed regularly with new food recipes.
Purple Carrot Plantry offers affordable bagels, millet buns, donuts, chocolate cups, Snickerdoodle cookies, etc.
Cost: $4.50 per serving for breakfast, $9 per serving for lunch, & $11 onwards per serving for dinner
6. Territory:
Territory meal kit subscriptions offer ready-to-serve meals, custom options, and large portions. Its meals suit every dietary preference, like vegan, paleo, low-carb, low-fat, keto, Mediterranean, or pescatarian diet.
You can order breakfast, lunch, dinner, or individual items à la carte. Vegan food meal kits by Territory deliver fresh and high-quality meals twice a week that provide all-round nutrition, so if you are looking for a sustainable meal kit, do try Territory. The menu features over 90 delicious recipes curated by local chefs and dieticians. You can set filters, and the app will suggest a menu accordingly.
Cost: $13 onwards per serving
7. Hungryroot:
The search for a single platform for grocery shopping and meal delivery ends with Hungryroot. Its meal kit subscription operates on a credit-based system, where customers can use their credit points to purchase pantry items, recipes, or snacks.
Like the other meal kit plans, Hungryroot Meal provides ingredients, recipes, instructions, and facilities to customize. You can swap ingredients to suit your taste buds. The meal kit is delivered nationwide, except in Hawaii and Alaska.
Cost: $65 per delivery
