After a global pandemic, a boom in fitness influencer marketing and an increased knowledge around nutrition, Australians are more eager to eat healthy, however the 2018 census found that two thirds of adults are overweight or obese and only 3 in 50 of the population eat the recommended amount of fruit and vegetables.

Home cooking has been found to greatly reduce the likelihood of having excess body weight and cholesterol. However, cooking at home, especially paired with a busy household can sometimes seem unachievable.

Queensland dietitian Emma Lavelle found that meal kits can be beneficial for people on the go.

“Meal kits can be a great way for busy people to include healthy, nutritious meals into their diet without the stress of shopping," Emma says.

While many meal kits offer specific meals for low calorie diets and feature the specific macronutrients of very meal, Emma would prefer meal kits move away from that.

“They could focus on a healthy balance of carbohydrates, protein, fat and colour instead to foster a mindset away from numbers and counting calories”.

Whether something is “healthy” goes far beyond just the ingredients. Meal kits create healthy habits, like learning to cook at home, and being presented with new ingredients.

University student Emily Hutchison started using Hello Fresh for the convenience but found the kit quite nutritious. “They had a healthy serving of fats, protein, carbs and vegetables” she says.

Dietitian Emma says that meal kits can be expensive and instead, suggested adding nutrition to a meal where it is normally lacking, without increasing your cook time. “A good example is 2-minute noodles," Emma says. "By adding some vegetables like corn, broccoli or Asian greens directly to your boiling water, you’re instantly adding nutrition to your meal".

A large point of contention for consumers when it comes to meal kits, is if it's worth the cost? Every household has different incomes and budgets, however when surveyed by Food52, 59% said cost was their main hindrance from purchasing meal kits.

Kellie Rowland, single mother of three, finds meal kits cheaper. “I work so much so it's either Hello Fresh or Uber Eats," Kellie says. "I spend $149 for five nights of meals and all I have to do is buy milk, bread and cereal”.

Katherine Redfern, a senior accountant who has previously also purchased Hello Fresh, says “there’s no way meal kits are affordable, especially in regional areas”. Regional areas regularly incur extra delivery fees. For example, Hello Fresh charges $9.99 for anywhere within 60 kms of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide, and anything further than that is an extra $9.99 fee.

“Meal kits just can’t compete with what you’re able to achieve with a solid budget, not unless there’s a 20-40% discount applied," Katherine says.

Meal kits lure in new customers by offering huge discounts of up to $150 off their first few deliveries. Katherine says meal kits may be a good idea during busy periods,“if you are considering frequent take out instead of home cooking, if you use the discounts wisely, meal kits may be a good solution”.

­­Student Emily also found the kits “quite expensive” and found herself “forking out more money for another grocery shop to cover the meals the kits didn’t”.

“All together my meals would cost $150 for a week where I would normally spend $50-$60 on normal groceries," says Emily.

Out of the eight main meal kits sold in Australia, EveryPlate was found to be the cheapest after all delivery costs, and YouPlateIt was found to be the most expensive .