The 5 Best Organic Meal Delivery Programs of {month-en} 2024
Meal delivery kits are here to make your life easier - but sadly, not all of them have organic ingredients.
But, never fear: I've tried and tested over 10 meal kit delivery services, and have stringently assessed whether they either have organic ingredients and if so, to what extent.
Here’s what I discovered: the below are my top picks for the best organic meal delivery kits of 2020.
In a rush? Here’s my quick list of the best organic meal kits of 2024:
Sun Basket: The best for its all-organic, dietary-specific meal plans
Green Chef: The best for a slightly cheaper all-organic, meal plan-specific provider
Home Chef: The best for organic customization options
Marley Spoon: Best for (some) organic variety
Hello Fresh: Best for variety that’s 90% organic
But, a word of caution: you will usually pay a premium for an organic meal kit service. To read more about how to keep this in mind while choosing the right meal kit for you, click here.
Sun Basket: The best for its all-organic, dietary-specific meal plans
What I liked
All-organic produce only (certified by the USDA)
Keto, paleo, vegan and other diet plans available
Free shipping on your first order
What I didn't like
One of the higher-priced meal kits on the market
I really, really love Sun Basket and sing its praises all the time. Why? Because it’s one of the only meal kit delivery services on the market that caters to people with specific dietary needs: whether that’s diabetic-free, Mediterranean or paleo, this is the meal kit service you need if you have some kind of non-standard diet plan.
It’s all organic too, with 18 recipes to choose from weekly, consisting of both American-style dishes and more exciting international choices. You can easily adjust your preferences (whether you're looking for meat-free, shellfish-free or otherwise), and even divide your meal choices into breakfast, lunch, dinner or otherwise!
Shipping is $6.99 a week, but honestly, if you eat only organic food and have a dietary need, the shipping is well worth the price.
Green Chef: The best for a slightly cheaper all-organic, meal plan-specific provider
What I liked
America’s first USDA-organic certified meal kit provider
Under 30-minute combined meal prep and cooking time
Keto, paleo and vegan-specific diet plans on offer
What I didn't like
Shipping costs $8.99 a week
As the first-ever USDA-certified meal kit delivery service, Green Chef is, well, thoroughly green, and the meal kit to go to if you're looking for all-organic produce.
It's also a good place to go if you follow a vegan, keto or paleo diet - but be warned, it doesn't have the meal variety of Sun Basket, with only 6-7 options a week to choose from. But - and it's a big but - of those 6-7 options available, each recipe will only take a maximum of 30 minutes to both prepare and cook your food, which wins Green Chef masses of convenience points from me.
It does have a $8.99 delivery fee, and it's slightly higher priced than other meal kits on the market, but again, it's all-organic certified and has dietary-specific plans. In my eyes, that’s well worth the slightly higher price tag.
Hello Fresh: The best for organic customization options
What I liked
Organic upgrades available (for meat, fish and protein)
Choose each recipe individually, there’s no plan
Get free shipping on orders over $49
What I didn't like
$10 shipping on orders under $49 - a little pricey
Home Chef is one of the most interesting meal kit service out there, as it does things a little differently: for one thing, you don't need to be restricted by a set plan with set recipe options: you set the number of people you want to feed, and the number of servings to be delivered in a week, and then you choose each meal separately. Each meal has a different price point, and some of the best individual customization options I’ve ever seen.
You just choose the protein that would like to upgrade (be that an extra portion or organic/antibiotic-free meat or dairy), et voila!
I like this approach, as if you're only focused on eating certain types of organic produce, it doesn't mean you pay a premium - only on the meat or fish etc.
If you have a dietary preference or prefer all organic produce, then Home Chef might not be the email kit for you.
Marley Spoon: Best for (some) organic variety
What I liked
Super easy to follow instructions
22+ recipes weekly
From just $6.99 per portion
What I didn't like
Not all ingredients are strictly organic
While not all of the ingredients at Marley Spoon are organic, it really, really makes an effort: the chicken used in recipes is NAE (no antibiotics ever), and it admits that “not all our ingredients are organic. We source organic ingredients from time to time - most of our beef is grass-fed”.
With a really solid range of over 22 recipes a week to choose from (and very easy to follow recipes), Marley Spoon is a great choice for you if you want some organic ingredients, and a lot of recipe choices.
Hello Fresh: best for variety that’s 90% organic
What I liked
17+ recipe options a week
Calorie-limited, quick-cooking menus on offer
Real-time trackable deliveries
What I didn't like
No dietary-specific plans on offer
Although Hello Fresh has, well, ‘fresh’ in its name, it actually only uses around 90% of organic ingredients. But still, that’s at least 80% more than some other meal kit services!
The company says it “focuses on creating a pleasurable, positive cooking experience in the kitchen”, and that it works with “trusted, experienced and sustainable business partners to ensure high quality, seasonal and farm-sourced produce...at peak freshness”.
There are around 17+ meal options per plan, with some dietary-specific plans in there too.
What You Need to Know About the Best Organic Meal Kit Services
While all meal kit services state that they try to deliver the freshest, healthiest recipes to your door, you can't be totally certain that this means using only organic ingredients (other than with Sun Basket and Green Chef, who proudly make a point about this).
There are some other aspects of choosing the best organic meal kit for you, that actually have not that much to do with the ingredients themselves! Some of the things I recommend looking into include -
If you have a dietary need or follow a specific diet: while most meal kit delivery services will include organic ingredients (and some might even proudly state they are all organic), not all of them have dedicated dietary plans. Options like Green Chef and Sun Basket both have paleo, keto and vegan options, among others, although some, like Freshly, Every Plate and otherwise don't. It’s best to check at each provider what they can offer you.
Your budget - usually, if you have a specific dietary need or are looking for all-organic ingredients, you can expect to pay around $3-4 more per portion. That’s why I’ve included some providers on my list that aren't entirely organic - Hello Fresh offers 90% organic produce, while Marley Spoon offers all-organic meat.
Shipping costs - remember, if you're looking for all-organic, that’s already going to increase the amount you pay per portion. Once you add shipping in too, your costs increase. Some providers - Blue Apron and Home Chef - offer free shipping over a certain price point or order number, while others - Freshly - can have very expensive shipping costs, depending on the number of meals you order.
The delivery days on offer. Weirdly, as most meal kit services all deliver to the same area, they all offer different delivery days to customers. You really need to think which days suit you best - some providers (Blue Apron, Dinnerly) offer Saturday deliveries, while I even found Freshly to offer me a Sunday delivery option, meaning I could meal prep over my weekend!
