Are Meal Kits Worth the Hype and Money During Lockdown?

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In these difficult times of the rising unemployment and a global recession, both courtesy of the COVID-19 pandemic, living frugally has become a necessity for millions of people. It’s only natural that you would reevaluate all your spending to see how you can save money. The value of meal kits is one of the things that are definitely worth a consideration right now. They might seem like a luxury that you can do without. But before you make this kind of decision, be sure to consider the following.

Are Meal Kits Worth the Hype and Money During Lockdown?

First of all, think about the benefits of meal kits, namely how they encourage you to cook and eat healthier. Consuming less restaurant food is also good for the planet. And today it’s a necessity as the majority of restaurants are closed because of lockdowns.

Benefits for Families (During the Pandemic and Beyond)

In order to determine the true value of meal kits for frugally aware readers, you should understand what exactly these kits can do for you.

1. You get to save time on cooking as making a meal out of a kit shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes.
2. You get to enjoy delicious foods and learn new dishes from around the world. For some people, this gives access to ingredients that aren’t easily available in your local grocery store.
3. You reduce the amount of food waste.
4. Meal kits cost less per meal than eating out or takeout, so you get to save money.
5. It gets easier to keep your weight in check as you won’t overeat with meal kits.

Quite an important benefit today is also the fact that getting these deliveries reduces the necessity for grocery store visits. We have to do everything possible to stop the progress of this pandemic. So, cutting down the number of times you step out of your house is important for everyone on the planet.

On the Costs of Meal Kits

The most important question for a frugal person is whether the meal kits are worth the money they cost. There is no arguing the fact that they are more expensive than groceries. However, if you do some calculations, you’ll see that the numbers don’t differ by that much.

If money is a big concern for you at the moment, remember that you can cut the costs even with meal kits. The cost per serving in these kits drops as if the number of servings increases. Also, vegetarian options are, usually, more affordable. That’s simply because veggies are cheaper by default.

Note that there are several meal kit providers available and their costs differ as well. You can plan your deliveries cleverly to build the most cost-efficient plan.

There aren’t any additional taxes on meal kits as they are basically classed as groceries.

So, Are Meal Kits Worth It?

Meal kits definitely can be worth it if you are one of the people to appreciate their benefits. It always boils down to deciding whether the extra advantages offered by the kit are worth extra money. The answer to that will be different for every family.

Overall, meal kits don’t differ from the costs of groceries that much. To see this, you should calculate exactly how much your meals end up costing you per every serving. Even in a grocery store, pre-made or otherwise prepped foods are more expensive than completely raw produce. If you purchase that kind of foods often, meal kits won’t affect your grocery bill much. However, they can help you enjoy healthier meals.

All in all, meal kits are definitely worth it for people who generally eat out or order takeout a lot. Also, people who tend to cook too much and end up throwing away leftovers could benefit using kits.

The later is a very important consideration because food waste is a huge problem in developed countries. Reducing the amount of waste per household could be of great benefit not only to your family budget. It’s also essential for the health of the planet.

Those things considered, meal kits have some very obvious benefits. But only you can decide whether they are worth it for your family. At this time of restricted dining options, the kits might be a great solution for several problems.

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