The Best Baby Food Pouches: 2023 Guide
This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Please read my disclosure.This is your guide to the healthiest and best baby food pouches on the market today! Learn what to avoid, what to buy, and what to look for on the label!
When your little one transitions to solids, a common question is: should I buy pre-made baby food pouches or make baby food at home? While it doesn’t necessarily have to be an either-or, many of you know that I’m a huge fan of homemade baby food because it’s so easy and you can control all of the ingredients your little one is getting. I shared all of the recipes I used for Layla and Ayan in my baby food cookbook and put many on my blog here!
But there are those times when you’re on the go, or pressed for time, and you don’t have any homemade baby food on hand. Which is when baby food pouches can be a quick and convenient meal for your little one! But there are SO many baby food pouches out there, and not all of them are healthy. Many are filled with processed ingredients and added sugars. This can set your baby up to only appreciate sweet foods and reject vegetables as they get older. So what should you buy? And what should you avoid?
This is your guide to the best baby food pouches available today!
Can Some Baby Food Pouches Really Be That Unhealthy?
The food industry knows that babies shouldn’t be having added sugars when they first start solids, right?
Wrong.
As you have probably heard when it comes to buying pre-packaged food, what’s on the front is often misleading. This is also true when it comes to baby food pouches. The front may say spinach and kale, but when you turn it over you’ll find less expensive fillers such as fruit purees, or even fruit juices like apple juice concentrate. Sometimes in a “spinach” pouch the first 3 ingredients are fruits! That’s because, while there may be spinach, the manufacturer is not required to list the percentage of ingredients on the label.
This basically means that your baby is only getting a sweet taste when eating that pouch and isn’t getting exposed to the actual taste of a vegetable. And in those early months of developing tastebuds, getting exposure to all kinds of flavors and tastes is essential to having a baby who doesn’t become a picky eater (who rejects veggies) later on!
Why Is It So Confusing To Find The Best Baby Food Pouches For Your Child?
Ingredient labels are confusing, packaging is misleading. I remember when I first gave Layla a baby food pouch and she devoured it. It was a pouch that said “organic super greens” on it. And I remember thinking: “Yeah! She loves greens!” When I turned it over, the ingredients were: bananas, pear, apple, spinach. What??
It has always really bothered me that most baby food pouches (even the ones promoting veggies) contain fruit. Like why add bananas or pears to a carrot & sweet potato pouch? Carrots and sweet potatoes are already naturally sweet – there is no need for fruit purees to make it even sweeter! Since breast milk is naturally sweet, it’s so important that babies learn the other tastes: bitter, sour, pungent, etc. when they start solids. All the fruit purees are essentially taking over your baby’s taste buds, making them think that if food isn’t sweet it’s not worth eating.
On top of that, many pouches that are fruit-forward and look healthy actually have a ton of unnecessary processed ingredients added. Take a look at Gerber’s Fruit & Yogurt Strawberry Banana Pouch.
Sugar, Carrot Juice Concentrate, Natural Flavor, Gelatin, Two different types of coloring…
These are all major red-flag ingredients in baby food. What in the world is gelatin doing in a pouch that looks vegetarian-friendly? And for a pouch that is supposed to have apples and strawberries (both of which are rich in fiber), there is less than 1g fiber in the entire pouch because of all of the fillers added. AND this pouch has 14g sugar. That’s as much as 1.5 Fun Sized Milky Way bars, or 1/3 of a can of Coke.
That’s why reading labels is so important to finding healthy, packaged baby food! So how do you find those pouches? Skip to the end of this post for my list of the healthiest baby food pouches! But first…
Top 5 Tips To Find The Best Baby Food Pouches
- Look at the sugar content: Stick to pouches with less than 8g of sugar, but ideally you’ll want to find pouches between 4-6g of sugar. For example, if you look at the front of Ella’s Organic Apples, Green Beans, Raisins pouch, you might think, “green beans are in here, this is great!” But the pouch actually has 13g of sugar from the apples and raisins, while the green beans are a very small addition. 13g sugar is equal to a fun sized milky way bar.
- Look to see if the ingredient listed on the front of the package is the first ingredient listed on the back. If you’re buying “spinach and apples,” it’s likely that apples are the dominant flavor. Some companies are more transparent than others on the percentage or amount of each ingredient in the pouch.
- Stick to pouches that ONLY have vegetables. These are harder to find, but they do exist. And they actually taste like vegetables! If you do buy one with veggies & fruits, make sure there is <8g sugar, that vegetables are first, and fruits are last on the ingredients list. Beware of labels that make it seem like the pouch only has veggies: there are some deceptive pouches such as Veggie Blends, and Plum Organics Mighty Veggie pouches. These veggie blends also contain fruit, and often has as much or sometimes more sugar than those labeled as fruit blends.
- Fiber matters. A good sign that a pouch is either mostly water or fillers is when the fiber content is 1g or less. Aim for pouches with 2g fiber or more.
- Avoid ingredients likely to be contaminated with heavy metals. Pouches that have apples, pears, carrots, sweet potatoes, and rice are particularly at risk. (For more details: A study done by the Clean Label Project in 2017 found that 65% of baby food products had detectable levels of arsenic, 36% detectable levels of lead, and 58% contained detectable levels of cadmium. A more recent study done by Consumer Reports in August of 2018 found that out of 50 nationally distributed baby food products, every single one of them had trace amounts of at least one of the heave metals which included arsenic, lead, or cadmium. Two-thirds of those tested had worrisome amounts of heavy metals, and 15 of the foods could pose potential health risk. The pouches that included rice and/or sweet potato were more likely to have higher amounts of heavy metal, and organic foods were just as likely to contain heavy metals as their non-organic counterparts.)
There are pouches out there that are organic, vegetable-forward, and don’t have any added sugars or fruit juices in them.
So here it is: the healthiest baby food pouches on the market today, the brands I love, and which pouches to buy.
A special shout out to Alison Corey from Keeping the Peas who helped me with some of the research for this post! If a pouch is not listed on this list, it’s likely either high in heavy metals (per the Consumer Reports and Clean Label Project studies) or too high in sugar/fruits/processed ingredients, and should be avoided. But if you have a question about a particular pouch, don’t hesitate to ask in the comments of this post!
What Makes These the Best Baby Food Pouches?
- They contain between 0-8g of natural sugar; and 0g added sugar
- They have 2g fiber or more
- They are all organic
- They don’t carry a risk of heavy metals
The Best Baby Food Pouches (Organized by Brand)
Holle Organic Baby Food: Holle’s baby food is made in Europe and is certified both Organic and Biodynamic, which means that their farming practices go above and beyond just regular organic standards. All of their baby food is unsweetened, I love these flavors from this brand:
- Veggie Bunny: Carrots, Sweet Potatoes, and Peas
- Power Parrot: Pear, Apple, Spinach
- Zebra Beat: Apple, Banana, Beetroot
Cerebelly Organic Custom Pouches: All of Cerebelly’s pouches are super healthy and made with 100% organic ingredients. All of their pouches were developed by their founder – a neuroscientist and mom who is dedicated to creating the highest quality baby food possible. The way it works is super simple: you fill out a quick survey that tells Cerebelly your child’s age and what they’re up to. Cerebelly recommends a personalized pack of organic purees with the right blend of nutrients, and it gets shipped right to your door! The best part – they offer 20% off your first order + free shipping with the code: FIRSTORDER20!
Yumi Organic Baby and Toddler Food. Yumi prides itself on creating custom blends for your baby that are 100% organic, made with real food, customized based on your baby’s stage of eating (from Stage 1 purees all the way to snacks and mini meals!). Their food comes in little jars – not pouches – as it’s made fresh and delivered weekly, straight to your door. You can also be confident that Yumi’s food contains no heavy metals, as they partner with trusted farms that are USDA Certified Organic, Non-GMO Project Verified and follow rigorous food safety testing. They look at federal data on soil contamination to find the best farms. Lastly, you get to choose from their range of 60+ unique organic meals you won’t find anywhere else, handpicked by nutritionists to support every milestone! Yumi is also offering 50% off your first order with the code: PICKY50!
I love Serenity Kids because ALL of their pouches are under 5 grams of sugar! They’re 100% organic, made with super clean ingredients, has no added preservatives or sugars, and were created by a husband and wife team trying to find a better option for baby food for their daughter. Here are all of hte pouches I love – use the code PICKY to get 15% off your first order!
- SK – Kabocha Squash, Butternut, Pumpkin, 2g Sugar
- SK – Butternut Squash + Spinach, 2g Sugar
- SK – Carrot, Spinach and Basil, 3g Sugar
- SK – Chicken, Beef, Pork or Wild Salmon (choose your variety here), 2-3g Sugar
- SK – Carrots, 4g Sugar
- SK – Sweet Potato + Parsnip, 4g Sugar
- SK – Mixed Root Veggies, 4g Sugar
- SK – Sweet Potato + Spinach, 4g Sugar
White Leaf Provisions: WLP is a family business run by a husband and wife team who are bringing the first 100% regeneratively farmed, biodynamic, organic & GMO-Free baby food line to retail in the US! I love their pouches because the ingredients are so pure, and the majority of them have less than 8 grams of sugar per pouch! And, they are offering all of my readers 10% off your purchase by using the code “PICKYEATS” at checkout! My two favorites are:
- WLP – Pumpkin + Nectarine, 5g Sugar
- WLP – Peach + Oat, 7g Sugar
- WLP – Pumpkin + Nectarine, 5g Sugar
- WLP – Peach + Oat, 7g Sugar
Amara Organic – Note: these do not come in a pouch that is ready to serve – they need to be mixed with water or milk and served in a bowl. But these are still a good option if your baby is ok eating from a bowl/spoon and you need an option that saves you time!
- Amara – Black Bean and Sweet Corn, 0g Sugar
- Amara – Peas, Corn, Carrots, 2g Sugar
- Amara – Potato Kale Mash, 2g Sugar
- Amara – Pumpkin + Pear, 2g Sugar
- Amara – Sweet Potato Raspberry, 5g Sugar
- Amara – Oats and Berries, 5g Sugar
- Ella’s Kitchen Veggie Bean Feast, 1g Sugar
- Ella’s Spaghetti and Meatball, 1g Sugar
- Ella’s Beefy Stew, 2g Sugar
- Ella’s Vegetable and Lentil Bake, 3g Sugar
- Ella’s Pears, Peas, and Broccoli, 8g Sugar
- Beechnut Peas & Spinach, 2g Sugar
- Beechnut Peas, Green Bean and Avocado, 4g
- Beechnut Corn, Kale, Quinoa, 4g Sugar
- Beechnut Veggies, Squash, Peas, Pear, 6g Sugar
- Beechnut Apple, Kiwi, Spinach, 6g Sugar
- Beechnut Pear, Pumpkin, Cranberry, 7g Sugar
- Beechnut Veggies, Carrots, Zucchini, Pear, 7g Sugar
- Beechnut Apple, Black Bean, Raspberry, 8g Sugar
- Sprout – Green bean, peas, butternut squash, 1g Sugar
- Sprout – Butternut squash, chickpea, quinoa, dates, 4g Sugar
- Sprout – Butternut Squash, Blueberry, Apple, with Beans, 5g Sugar
- Sprout – Mixed Berry Oatmeal, 7g Sugar
- Plum – Hearty Veggie, Pumpkin, Spinach, Chickpea and Broccoli, 1g Sugar
- Plum – Hearty Veggie, Corn, Kale, Carrot and Tomato, 1g Sugar
- Plum – Hearty Veggie, Butternut Squash, Carrot, Chickpea and Corn, 1g Sugar
- Plum – Hearty Veggie, Carrots, Beans, Spinach and Tomato, 2g Sugar
- Plum – Stage 3 Meals, Carrot, Spinach, Turkey, Corn, Apple, Potato, Celery, Onion, 2g Sugar
- Plum – Stage 3 Meals, Carrot, Chickpea, Pea, Beef, Tomato, Celery, Date, Onion, 4g Sugar
- Plum – Eat Your Colors Red, 5g Sugar
- Plum – Eat Your Colors Orange, 5g Sugar
- Plum – Pear, Green Bean and Greek Yogurt, 6g Sugar
- Plum – Pear Spinach and Pea, 6g Sugar
- Plum – Pear, Purple Carrot and Blueberry, 7g Sugar
- Plum – Eat Your Colors Green, 7g Sugar
- Plum – Mighty 4 – Guava, Banana, Black Bean, Carrot, Oat, 7g Sugar
- Plum – Mighty 4 – Pear, Cherry, Blackberry, Strawberry, Spinach, 7g Sugar
- HF – Hearty Meals, Root Vegetables, Turkey and Quinoa, 2g Sugar
- HF – Hearty Meals, Harvest Vegetables, Chicken and Quinoa, 2g Sugar
- HF – Hearty Meals, Vegetable Beef Medley, 3g Sugar
- HF – Green Beans, Spinach, and Pears, 4g Sugar
- HF – Zucchini, Pear, Chickpea, Kale 5g Sugar
- HF – Purple Carrots, Banana, Avocado, and Quinoa, 6g Sugar
- HF – Zucchini, Apples, Peas, Quinoa, and Basil, 6g Sugar
- HF – Pear, Green Beans, Peas + Super Chia, 6g Sugar
- HF – Pears, Kale, and Spinach, 7g Sugar
- HF – Black Beans, Beets and Bananas, 7g Sugar
- HF – Pears, Pumpkin, Peaches, and Granola, 7g Sugar
- HF – Pears, Peas, Broccoli, 7g Sugar in the new formulation
- HF – Pumpkin, Apples, Peached and Cinnamon, 8g
- HF – Pears, Squash, and Blackberries, 8g Sugar
- HF – Pears, Zucchini, Peas, 8g Sugar
- HF – Pears, Pumpkin, Passionfruit, 8g Sugar
- EB – Broccoli, Red Lentil, Oat, 1g Sugar
- EB – Spinach & Potato, 1g Sugar
- EB – Carrots & Broccoli, 2g Sugar
- EB – Winter Squash, 2g Sugar
- EB – Summer Vegetable Dinner, 2g Sugar
- EB – Corn & Butternut Squash, 3g Sugar
- EB – Peas & Brown Rice, 4g Sugar
- EB – Zucchini & Broccoli Medley, 4g Sugar
- EB – Spring Vegetables & Pasta, 4g Sugar
Note: If you are in Canada, Baby Gourmet has a couple of good options (e.g. their roasted squash and fruit medley has only 6 grams of sugar!), and their savory meals are low in sugar as well!
I used many of the pouches on this list (prioritizing the flavors listed in bold since those contain only veggies) for my kids when I needed a meal on the go. One thing to note on these pouches is that even if you use them regularly, it’s still important to incorporate a variety of finger foods so your baby becomes familiar with the different textures and flavors of non-pureed food.
I know the baby food aisle can be overwhelming at times, but I hope this post helps you find the healthiest baby food pouches with confidence! If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to leave me a comment on this post or contact me here! I respond to every single message I get! 🙂
Related products for babies!
Looking for the best baby products? Learn more about my favorite kids daily multivitamin that is included in my article on best multivitamin for kids. Or check out these fantastic products for your kids:
- The Best Probiotics for Kids
- Best Baby Cereal Brands
- 80+ Healthy Road Trip Snacks For Kids And Toddlers
- Best Organic Baby Formula
I know this is an older post, but I’ll hope you will see my comment and respond. Do you have any concern on the sodium content in cerebelly or serenity kids? I bought both of these brands and just noticed some have 25mg or even as high as 75mg. When many other brands have 0mg. Thank you.
Hi Belinda! I’m not concerned about the sodium content in Cerebelly or Serenity Kids, because they’re not adding salt to their purees. They’re using the whole food and because it’s less processed, the naturally occurring sodium in the foods is what’s listed on the label. For example, 1 cup of broccoli has 30mg sodium, 1 cup of chicken has 115mg naturally occurring sodium. But you should talk to your pediatrician to make sure they’re not concerned about the sodium in the baby food you’re using as well!
What do you think of services like Yumi or Little Spoon?
I think both are great options! They are more pricey, but I’d use the same guidelines to evaluate their baby food as I use in this post to evaluate the pouches –e.g. low sugar (less than 8 grams per container), veggie forward, etc. Hope that helps!
His pediatrician recommends 1000 calories a day.
Got it! That’s not a huge difference from what he’s already eating (which is good news!) If he’s already eating about 800 calories a day – you just need an additional 200 calories to help him gain weight. You can do this a couple of ways: 1) mix healthy fats / calorie dense foods into his existing meals 2) add an additional meal. Here are some calorie dense foods: 1/2 an avocado has 234 calories, 2 tablespoons of nut or seed butter (peanut, almond, sunflower, cashew, etc) has 200 calories, 1 tbsp olive oil has 100 calories, 1 tbsp butter has 100 calories, 1 cup of whole milk has 150 calories. Given just this short list you could: mix 1/4 of an avocado into one of his pouches and blend it so it has the same consistency (which will get you 100 extra calories a day) + add 1-2 tbsp nut or seed butter to his diet in any way (through a smoothie, mixed with a pouch, spread on bread, etc). You could also just take about 1.5 cups of whole milk and add a little bit of it into his existing formula bottles throughout the day – so by the end of the day he’s gotten the 1.5 cups total. You could add olive oil and butter to every meal he eats – getting 1 tbsp total throughout the day, and then adding avocado or nut butter to make up the other 100 calories. These are just some easy quick fixes that should help – as long as your pediatrician approves of this approach! If you’re looking for more detailed recs feel free to send me an email at pickyeats@gmail.com and we can talk more that way! Thanks!
Hi again,
with my 1st kid i still lived in Europe and used to buy jars with meat only, which i would mix with my homemade veggie purees. Now i cannot find meat only here in Canada and i was wondering whats the best way to cook meat for baby purees?
P.S. i just ordered your book and if you have that explained there i will read it
Hi Gabs! Yes I provide detailed instructions on how to make meat-only purees in my book! So take a look at that, and if you still have questions don’t hesitate to reach out. Thanks!
Ok great,it’s arriving tomorrow.Can’ t wait!
Awesome! 🙂
Hi Anjali,
i cant find any of these brands in Canada, do you have any suggestions on brands that are sold here?
Hi Gabs! I’m so sorry I live in the US so I have no visibility into what’s available in Canada! If there are particular brands you’re looking at, feel free to email me a photo of the nutritional label/ingredients and I can give you my thoughts!
I’m wondering why the amount of sugar is that big of a deal if it’s sugar from fruit? What’s the difference between eating a pouch with 12 grams of sugar or eating a pear which has roughly 17 grams? Thanks!
Hi Kelly! The difference is that eating 1 whole pear will take a baby/toddler much much longer than sucking down 1 pouch. There’s a lot of chewing and other body functions involved when you eat a whole pear, which typically causes the child to feel satisfied sooner and feel fuller longer. The other issue with the pouches that have 12+ grams of sugar is that they will often market themselves to have veggies in them — when in fact veggies are the last ingredient on the list. So if you only buy those types of pouches, you might think your child is getting accustomed to the taste of veggies when they’re really only getting used to tasting sweeter and sweeter things, which will make it harder for them to accept other flavors (green veggies and other veggies primarily) in the future. Hope that helps, let me know if you have any other questions!
This post was very informative. My 16 month old is currently refusing to eat pretty much anything and everything. Won’t even place it in his mouth to try it. I know his new teeth have been slowly coming in and bothering him. It stresses me out to know he may not be getting all the nutrients he may need . Any suggestions ?
Hi Taria! Was your son previously a good eater and is just now refusing food? If so it might just be related to teething like you said and should pass in a few days. If not, and he’s always been somewhat picky – it could be a texture or taste issue. It’s hard to know what the issue is (and which potential solutions to recommend) without knowing more about him though! If it’s teething related, have you seen whether he might eat “smoothie ice cubes” — basically freezing fruit & veggie purees and letting him suck on them through one of those mesh teethers? Or making him fruit/veggie/protein smoothies and letting him just drink his food for now? But if he’s always been picky you might want to ask your pediatrician about what might be going on and explore things related to sensory/texture/taste issues. Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions!
Thank you for your advice. For the most part it appears he has always been a picky eater and could be a texture issue. Although, it does get worse when teeth are pushing through. I have been making him fresh smoothies each day to make sure he is getting his greens :). I will definitely check with my pediatrician at his next check up. Thanks for your help!
Makes sense!! No problem at all – so glad I could help!
Good Morning! Do you have any experience with adults using these foods?
Hi! I’m sure adults can use these foods – they are technically for toddlers/young kids, but ingredients wise they’re just veggies and fruits so I’m sure it should be fine for adults to use them if needed!
Hi! I’m looking for a healthy oatmeal breakfast pouch for my 1 year-old for a road trip we’re taking soon. He usually eats fresh oatmeal at home with banana, cinnamon & almond butter for breakfast but when travelling, i just need something that doesn’t require cooking/heating up etc! Is there anything you recommend? I just feel like all the pouches are loaded with sugar and additives which i’d really rather avoid giving him if i can.
Hi Deepali! I actually haven’t found a healthy oatmeal breakfast pouch that’s low in sugar unfortunately! What I would do is choose any of the pouches on this list, and then pair that with some sprouted grain bread with almond butter on the side (which will be similar in nutritional content as his typical oatmeal breakfast you described). Depending on how long your road trip is, you can also just make his breakfast and pack it in an air-tight container to bring with you and feed it to him on the road!
Hi Anjali
My baby is 14 months and would not eat enough homemade food (the food we eat). He’ll come and grab a couple of tiny bites and that’s it. So, I rely on the fruit, veggie and turkey/chicken pouches a lot. I give him Gerber’s turkey-rice tub and Sprout’s veggie power and power pak pouches. He loves them and gives me some satisfaction that he’s getting proper nutrients. He also accepts some lentil rice, parantha/roti etc., but again not sufficient enough to fill his tiny tummy. Is there anything else I can try? Are these good enough to feed my baby?
Thanks !
Hi Ashima! Regarding the pouches you’re already using, I would just make sure they have less than 8g sugar per pouch. Most of the sprout’s veggie power and power pak pouches have MORE than 8g sugar per pouch – because even though they say “veggies” on the front, there are actually more fruits mixed into many of the pouches than there are veggies. For the Gerber’s turkey/rice tub – I would just make sure that it’s organic if possible! If you are looking for even more pouch options for him, all of the pouches on this list would be great for him (assuming he’s not allergic to any specific fruits/veggies). Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions!
Thank you, Anjali. Yes, those food pouches definitely have >8g of sugar. But, so do every other brands have. I’ll try the ones on your list (on this page) and let you know. My other problem is – he’s not gaining enough weight (falls in lowest 10 percentile), so I have started to keep a track of his calorie intake. These days, his intake is somewhere from 700-850 calories a day, including formula, the pouches, snacks etc. I would really appreciate any help to make my baby eat. Thanks again for your help.
Got it! Yes all of the pouches on this list will have less than 8 grams of sugar so they are all good options. Regarding weight, how many calories does your pediatrician say he should be having each day? Based on that I can give you recommendations on what to give him and how to get more calories in him!
Thanks so much, this is such a helpful list! Do you have a recommendation for a first-food? Our pediatrician recommended rice cereal, but based on your comments about arsenic, I wondered if you had a safe brand or alternative suggestion? Our son is almost five months… not sitting up independently yet, so not quite ready for solids. But he will be soon, and he’s definitely showing interest.
Hi Kristen! I’m so glad this post was helpful for you! To your question – if you’re making baby food at home I’d recommend either avocados, green beans, peas, or mild squashes (butternut squash, zucchini, etc.) for a first food. And if you need baby food recipes, I have a bunch here: https://pickyeaterblog.com/category/recipes/baby-food-recipes/. If you’re buying a pouch I’d look for any pouch that has just one or two veggies (common ones are green beans or squashes!) I wouldn’t do rice cereal at all honestly – when you’re ready to introduce a grain, I’d introduce oats (and if you’re worried about allergies just choose gluten free oats!)
Good Morning! I am looking at your array of information and wondering if these foods would be appropriate for people during chemotherapy. I have continuing mouth and tongue sores which make it difficult to eat solid food. Do you have any experience with adults using these foods?
Hi Patricia! I do know of adults who use these foods – mainly as a way to get extra veggies in their diet if they’re on the go too much and are having challenges with that. But I don’t see any reason why these wouldn’t be appropriate for people during chemo. I’m so sorry to hear about the side effects you’re experiencing! I hope these pouches provide you with some relief!
Beech Nut breakfast pouch has 14g of sugar. They claim no added “refined sugar” but clearly this doesn’t mean no added other sugar. Too bad I like their products normally.
Hi Liz! Not all of the BeechNut pouches are healthy. Only the specific pouches I’ve listed in my post are healthy — I don’t list the breakfast pouch in my post for that exact reason 🙂 I’d recommend sticking to just the pouches on my list! Hope that helps!
Hi, thanks for the great post! Do you know why the clean label project got rid of all their individual ratings for baby foods? I wanted to avoid certain ones that I saw on there, and found they had gotten rid of all their ratings. Doesn’t seem like they’re going to respond to my questions about it either. Also, do you think these contaminants are found as much in all of our food supply, or more so in baby food items?
Hi! Honestly I have no idea why the clean label project did that. But I can say that none of the baby food pouches on the clean label project’s list of pouches to avoid appear on my list — I scrubbed their list before I made mine! So as far as I know, none of the pouches on this list should have any of the heavy metals issues that other pouches do have. As for the contaminants – they can be an issue with any pre-made foods that come from sweet potatoes, certain grains like oats/rice, and plant based protein powders. Hope that helps!
I bought my baby serenity kids when she was 4 months. And she loved it. I have tried them and they taste super healthy. Thank you for your post. She is now 6 months and I am happy to check new healthy flavors. 🙂
Oh great! I’m so happy to hear that Adela!
Hi Anjali
Awesome post… so knowledgeable… But my baby doesn’t like to salt… He’s in his 8th month and throws up when I give him any veggie or lentil soup with a very little salt. He likes to eat only sweet stuff. Any suggestions what should I do?
Hi! It’s totally ok if your baby doesn’t like salt! They really don’t need salt at this age, so my suggestion would be to just give him baby food without any salt in it and see how he does. The good news is none of these baby food pouches have salt in them, so they should be pretty palatable for your little one!
Great article
What are your recommendations on baby food in jar?
I don’t need the pouches.
Hi Kay! A few of the brands on my list – Beechnut and Earth’s Best make jarred baby food. I would just follow the same guidance in my post when you’re buying jarred baby food: mostly veggies, organic, low in sugar (less than 6g per jar), high in fiber, avoid sweet potato. Hope that helps!
I ordered the Amara peas, corn and carrots using your link. I tried some of the other links, but they were sold out. These are not pouches!!! They are “pouches” with dried baby food you have to mix with water or milk. I’m very dissapointed because I trusted your article to give me pouch options. My son won’t eat baby food from a jar or bowl, he will only eat pouches. Beware what you are promoting. I have organic peas, corn and carrots that I can actually feed him since he’s 11 months. I was looking for pouches for on the go. I’m going to try to return it.
Thanks for the feedback Amanda! I’m sorry that wasn’t clear in my post – I have added a note to make it super clear now. I added Amara as an option because like you said, many of the baby food pouches have been sold out due to the covid crisis! Sorry your son will not eat from a bowl and will only eat pouches, I know how hard/restricting that can be!
I like to use a veggie pouch every 1-2 days . I buy the Plum/Happy Family pouches that are peas & green beans (and list lots of both ingredients on the back…one of them has 6 green beans!). I’ve had people tell me that because these veggies have been boiled and “processed” they don’t have nutrition and are just sugar water. Is that true? Is my kid not gaining the same nutritional value as eating 6 whole green beans (minus fiber)?
Hi Caroline! It depends on the pouch honestly but with plum organics and happy family, where they list all of the ingredients very clearly on the back and don’t add anything other than the veggies/water – that’s not really true. All they have done to the veggies is cooked them and pureed them, the same as you would at home. The difference is that they might strain the veggies after pureeing and before packaging to get an even smoother consistency – which might remove some of the fiber (but certainly not the bulk of the fiber). If the green beans pouch you’re referring to is this one — it is the same as eating the 9 green beans listed on the package (because as you can see the fiber content in the pouch is good – 3g for the pouch). So the short answer is, if you’re choosing pouches like the green beans pouch, your child is getting the same nutritional value. The main difference is with taste/texture: since most pouches have combinations of veggies — if you only stick to pouches your child won’t know what a green bean looks like whole, or tastes like on it’s own – which might cause picky eating in the future. So I always recommend mixing in whole steamed veggies (tossed with butter/coconut oil/olive oil and a pinch of salt) along with pouches into your child’s diet. Hope that helps, let me know if you have any other questions!
Hi Anjali,
With life being so busy I had hoped my toddler was getting all those peas, spinach, kale and green beans I thought I was sneaking into his diet … thank you for taking the time to reply to my question! Much appreciated!
Totally makes sense! Yup you should be good – I’d just stick to the veggie forward pouches like the green beans one and others I’ve listed in my post! 🙂
Hi,
When you introduce it as first food. How many ounces makes one meal?
Hi! I usually did 1-2 oz per meal when I was first introducing my baby to solids!
hey do you have an instagram?
yes! I’m @thepickyeater on Instagram 🙂