We’ve all been there—in the supermarket, crunched on time and trying to find healthy snacks and meals for our kids. In this context the squeeze pouch looks ideal. Fruits? Check. Veggies? Check. Organic? Check. Not to mention convenient, shelf-stable, and affordable. In North America, pouch revenue is up tenfold over the last seven years, and nearly half of children under 3 are eating one or more pouches a day!
How Traditional Baby Food Pouches and Jars Are Made
We all understand the attraction of this no-fuss meal on-the-go. But they have some unsavory attributes that parents need to be aware of.
- Most shelf-stable baby food companies don’t start with fresh fruits and vegetables--they buy purees or concentrates heated and strained of fiber from other companies, blend them together, and heat them again in the new packaging, making the smooth meals you see sitting on the shelves for purchase.
- While baby food pouches are made from bases of fruits and vegetables, the process to make these pouches shelf-stable renders the contents chemically closer to sugary jam than whole produce with the necessary intact dietary fiber.
- The extraordinarily high heat level used to allow traditional baby food pouches and jars to sit on the shelf for one to two years breaks down vitamins and destroy enzymes needed for proper digestion.
What Does This Mean For Your Child's Health?
Pediatric feeding experts worry that reliance on these pouches as a meal replacement may dilute nutritional quality, increase picky eating, lead to cavities in young kids, and may even delay motor development.
One major problem is that pouches oversimplify the eating process, leaving babies without opportunities to develop oral and fine motor skills. Research suggests that children use all of their senses to learn about food—touching, smelling, and playing with food can increase a baby's acceptance of new foods, and pouches don’t allow for that sensory experience. Babies are most open to new tastes between 6 and 18 months, and if we don’t off a variety of foods and eating experiences, children are more likely to become picky eaters.
Most pouches have a sweet fruit or vegetable base, masking the flavor of less sweet vegetables and grains, and preventing children from tasting and subsequently liking less sweet foods. Sweet fruits and vegetables also mean that pouches are high in sugar. The average pouch contain more than twice the amount of sugar compared to jars or tubs of baby food!
How Pureyay Can Help
Every parent is trying to do their best when it comes to feeding their children, and there is a time and place for pouches, but experts advise that they should not be part of your child’s everyday diet.
Pureyay is here to help feed your little one delicious nutritious food without having to compromise.
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We use 100% organic fresh ingredients specially created to support growing bodies, brains and taste buds.
- We don’t strain our baby purees, so that your little one gets the full nutritional profile of fruits and vegetables.
- Pureyay comes in a variety of textures, opening up more possibilities to experience and enjoy new flavors and textures.
- Our meals are packaged in glass jars that don’t leach harmful chemicals and don’t require excessive heating.
- We don’t use additives, emulsifiers, or any funny fillers; and we do look at every ingredient that goes into our jars.