Nurture Life Review 2023: Is It Worth the Premium Price Tag?

Nurture Life in a Nutshell

This service was created for parents who want to feed their toddlers and kids nutritious meals created from scratch. From finger foods to more hearty meals to healthy snacks, you’ll get everything ready to serve.

Pros

• Extra veggies hidden in every meal

• Organic, quality ingredients

• Additional discounts for weekly orders of 12 meals or more

• Special discount available – 50% off sitewide for new customers!

Cons

• The menu doesn't change very often

• You can only order a maximum of 15 meals per week, snacks included

• It’s quite expensive

Nurture Life Is Best For

• Toddlers and kids

• Parents who want organic food for their kids

• Busy parents who don’t have a lot of time to cook

Nurture Life Overview

Nurture Life is designed specifically for little ones. I’ve heard about family-friendly companies, but this is the first time I’ve seen one that focuses exclusively on kids and toddlers.

I was curious. Can organic, healthy food look attractive to kids? And also, is the price tag justified, or is it just a way of scamming busy parents?

I found the answers to these questions and more.

How Nurture Life Works 

You start the ordering process by selecting a meal plan, based on the number of weekly meals you want to order. I didn’t have to create an account at this point, so you can see the options and prices as a visitor on the website.

So, back to the plans. You only have a limited number of options, or boxes, which you can fill with 6, 9, 12, or 15 meals. 

This is pretty similar to Yumble, which offers 4 to16 meals per weekly box and is also dedicated to children. However, with a meal delivery service like Veestro, you can choose up to 30 meals per week and feed the whole family, not just the youngsters.

After choosing the biggest box from Nurture Life, I was prompted to select the meals I wanted from the menu.

Nurture Life offers three meal categories: Finger Food, Kids Meals, and Snacks. I really liked this clear categorization, as opposed to Yumble’s menu where all types of meals and snacks are mixed in there together. 

At Nurture Life, the categories serve a clear purpose: to guide the parent based on the child’s age and level of dexterity. Finger Food consists of meals for older weaned babies and toddlers who are starting to grab food with their hands.

The Kids Meals are more advanced, as they require the use of cutlery, and are also more filling. If you’re not sure which type of meal is right for your child’s developmental stage, there’s a section on the FAQ page that can help you decide.

The Snacks are healthy treats for the entire family, but they’re considered meals on the website. This means they occupy vacant slots in your box/plan just like the other meals, so be careful not to add too many if you want space left for the actual food!

After I filled my box with 15 meals, I could finally create an account and proceed to checkout. This is where you’ll add your card details and complete the order.

Nurture Life Menu

The Nurture Life menu is created to be both nutritious and attractive to kids. Each meal is created by registered dietitians to always contain veggies, protein, and no empty calories. This means that each ingredient delivers nutrients and vitamins, making each meal filling and well-balanced. The salt and sugar levels in the meals are also very low.

All of the ingredients are carefully selected from trusted providers, but not all of the produce is organic. It usually says in the recipe name when organic ingredients are used so you’ll never be left wondering if it’s organic or not.

When I looked at Yumble’s menu, which is also targeted at children, I noticed that Nurture Life’s meals are more nutritionally balanced and more inventive. For example, Nurture Life doesn’t have any sandwich recipes, while at Yumble I counted at least five.

The menu doesn’t change weekly, to ensure that your kid’s favorites will always be available. However, you’ll notice new recipes added to the menu every month or so, to include more variety and flavor mixes.

For example, there’s a core recipe called Mac and Cheese with Hidden Butternut Squash, but recently Nurture Life added a version called White Mac and Cheese with Hidden Cauli and Broccoli, to switch up both the taste and the color.

I really liked the smart way veggies are sneakily added to the meals – particularly in the sauces. This way, your kid will never suspect that they’re eating cauliflower while getting all of its vitamins and benefits.

There are 12 items on the Finger Food menu, and 27 on the Kids Meals menu including eight Picky Eater recipes. There are also three Grab & Go options that don’t require heating. The snacks are ball-shaped Mighty Bites, like the Cinnamon Double Chocolate Chip. Yum!

Compared to Yumble’s menu, which has around 38 items combined, Nurture Life’s total of 43 is pretty similar. But if you want more options that are suitable for kids and adults alike, Veestro offers around 60 plant-based items on its a la carte menu, including vegan Chick'n Nuggets and pizza.

When it comes to price, the premium Kids Meals from Nurture Life cost a bit more because of the ingredients used and the difficulty level of the recipe. For example, the Homestyle Pot Roast with Mashed Potatoes contains slow-braised beef that has been roasted for three hours. Now that’s something even restaurants don’t often provide!

Although the foods are designed for kids aged 1 to 12 years old, you can realistically serve them to a kid up to age eight without complaints. The single-serve meals are around 200 calories each, so they may not be enough for a bigger child or a tween.

Also, if your weaning little one is starting to grab things to eat months before their first birthday, Finger Foods might be right for you. You can consult one of Nurture Life’s registered dietitians if you have any doubts.

If your child is younger than three years, Nurture Life is a better choice than Yumble, as the latter best caters to kids older than this age.

You can use the filters on the menu page to sort out anything that contains allergens like soy, dairy, and sesame. There are many vegetarian recipes that you can filter this way, too.

The facility in which the meals are prepared is entirely free from peanuts and tree nuts (except coconut). But if your child has serious allergies, like a gluten allergy, you should be extra careful and consult with a healthcare provider before signing up for a meal service.

If your family eats a plant-based diet, Veestro’s vegan meals might be a better fit. For specific health conditions, like gluten intolerance, Sunbasket has many meals designed with those restrictions in mind, which can be a great help to a concerned parent.

Here’s a quick summary of Nurture Life’s pricing and meal plans:

Nurture Life Delivery

Nurture Life delivers to all contiguous US states using UPS or UDS, directly to your door. Compared to Yumble, which only delivers to Texas and parts of the East Coast, West Coast, and Midwest, Nurture Life is accessible to most parents in the US.

If you want to make any changes to your order, skip a weekly delivery, or cancel your account, make sure to do it before your cutoff date, which you can check in the Orders section of your account.

The shipping fee is $8 for orders of six weekly meals, which can certainly add up, but if you order nine meals or more, you get free delivery.

Nurture Life Unboxing

The policy Nurture Life follows is simple: always cold, never frozen. The meals come in insulated packaging together with non-toxic gel packs, which keep the food cool in transit. The packaging is made from the highest quality food-grade plastics that are BPA-, PVC-, and phthalate-free.

Except for the Grab & Go ones, all meals can be frozen for up to 90 days. Make sure to place the meals in the refrigerator at arrival, where you can keep them for 6-7 days before freezing.

Nurture Life doesn’t put preservatives in the meals, so the food is kept fresh for so long by the Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) technology that pushes away the oxygen before sealing. Every meal has a “use by” date on the packaging though, so you can always check that for safety.

You don’t have to heat the Grab & Go meals, as they are best served cold, but for the ones you do want to heat, it’s super easy. It takes one minute in the microwave, or you can put the meal in the oven for 10-15 minutes in an oven-safe container.

Unlike Yumble, Nurture Life doesn’t have any extras in the boxes besides the meals. But I don’t think having stickers or activity sheets next to your food is anything more than a shiny marketing trick and says nothing about the quality of the food or service.

Favorite Nurture Life Meals

From the Finger Food menu, I liked the sound of the mini Salmon Cakes with Peas and Potatoes with Mustard, Dill, and a hint of Lemon Zest. It’s a nice introduction to fish that little ones can enjoy with the help of the already-known flavors of peas and potatoes. It’s also a great source of iron and vitamins.

From the Kids Meals menu, my favorite was the Cheeseburger Mac with Broccoli, as it has butternut squash hidden in the sauce, as well as lots of protein. The four-cheese sauce sounds amazing as well, and both the mac and the burger are classic kid favorites.

Nurture Life Customer Service

The customer support team is easy to reach by either email or phone for anything you need. The schedule is Monday to Friday, from 9 am to 5 pm CT. You can even shoot questions to one of the registered dietitians from Nurture Life the same way.

If you wish to cancel your subscription, you can do it by phone, email, or directly on the website. Simply log in, navigate to the Account section, and click 'Here' at the page's bottom to initiate the cancellation process.

You must complete any changes to your next order, including cancellation, before your cutoff date and time, which you can find in the Orders section of your account each week.

Nurture Life Prices

Every meal from the Finger Food menu costs $6.89, while the Kids Meals are usually $7.99, but there are a few premium recipes that cost an additional $1.50. When it comes to snacks, a portion always costs $7.99. 

This is in the same range as Yumble, which has prices from $5.99 to $9.99, depending on the size of the order.

The shipping from Nurture Life is $8 if you order the minimum of six meals per week, but if you order at least nine, you’ll get free delivery. What’s more, if you opt for the 12-meal plan you get a $10 discount on your order or $15 off for the 15-meal plan.

And if you use our special discount code, you get an additional $60 off your first four weeks, or $40 off your first two weeks, making your first orders a bargain.

If you decide to order from Veestro or Sunbasket, which offer meals targeted to adults – albeit with many child-friendly recipes – you’ll pay a significantly higher price per meal. But considering that the portions are bigger, your child will eat less than a full serving at once, so you’ll probably end up paying a similar price as each meal will go further.

Alternatives to Nurture Life

If you want to see a little overview of how Nurture Life compares to other meal delivery services, I’ve pulled together some info for you:

Yumble is another meal delivery service exclusively for kids, and it might be a better option if you’re on a tight budget and are ordering a lot of meals every week.

If you want to order meals for the whole family, not just for the kids, Veestro and Sunbasket may be a better choice for you, with Veestro being totally plant-based as well.

If you want to cook meals yourself or with your kids, Sunbasket has tons of creative meal kits with simple instructions. And if your little one has a gluten intolerance, Sunbasket has a gluten-free plan as well that you can check out.

The Bottom Line

Nurture Life was founded by a mother who wanted the best for her kid, so she started cooking all of his meals from scratch to make sure he got the right nutrition. With this service, you can get all of the benefits of healthy home cooking without having to spend hours in the kitchen. 

You can be sure that your little ones will get everything they need from the veggie kingdom together with healthy fats and proteins in an attractive form, with none of the risks of fast food. Even the tasty snacks are low in sugar and contain oats and seeds!

The only downside is you can’t feed your whole family with Nurture Life, so you’ll still have to take care of adult food some other way. But removing the stress of feeding the little ones is a pretty good investment, especially when the meals are so healthy and well-thought-out.

FAQ

How long do Nurture Life meals last?

Nurture Life meals last up to 6-7 days in the fridge, thanks to the Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) technology that pushes away the oxygen before sealing. Make sure to place the meals in the refrigerator on arrival. Except for the Grab & Go ones, all meals can be frozen for up to 90 days

How much are Nurture Life meals?

The Finger Food meals cost $6.89, while the Kids Meals are usually $7.99, but there are a few premium recipes that cost an additional $1.50. The snacks are $7.99 per portion.

Shipping is $8 if you order the minimum of six meals per week, but if you order at least nine, you get free delivery. What’s more, if you opt for the 12-meal plan you get a $10 discount on your order or $15 off for the 15-meal plan.

And if you use our special discount code, you get an additional $60 off your first four weeks or $40 off your first two weeks.

Can I freeze Nurture Life meals?

Yes. You will always receive the meals cold, never frozen, but you can freeze them yourself after unboxing – except for the Grab & Go ones. You can keep them frozen for up to 90 days.

For a full list of prepared meals – both frozen and fresh – take a look at our top prepared meal delivery services today.