As people become more aware of the health and environmental benefits of plant-based diets, more and more consumers are turning to vegan and vegetarian options. In the US, there is a wide variety of plant-based meal kits available in the market – something to suit every palate and preference.
The Plant-based Foods Association reported a record high of US$7.4 billion in plant-based retail sales in the US in 2021 and the plant-based meal sector is projected to grow at a moderate pace, to account for an estimated 29.4 per cent share of the global market.
If you’re looking to try plant-based meal kits, Viable.Earth has curated a list of plant-based meal kits you can find in the US to help you get started.
How do meal kits and meal-delivery services work?
Meal kits and delivery services are usually subscription-based. Just like any other subscription service, you can cancel anytime, suspend delivery, or schedule them as you require. Some companies deliver nationwide, locally, or just within a certain range.
Standard kits usually provide the ingredients you need to prepare your food. Sometimes fresh ingredients are included – pre-chopped, with premade sauces, spices, and recipes.
Some suppliers assume you already have staples like salt, pepper, and cooking oil, while others include everything, making their boxes pricer than others.
8 Plant based meal kits you can try in the US
#1 Sun Basket
Delivery areas: Most zip codes in the US, excluding AK, HI, MT, ND, and parts of NM.
Price: Starts at US$9.99 per meal
All meal kits are available with pre-portioned ingredients and easy-to-follow recipes. Meals vary to fit a range of dietary preferences, including paleo, vegetarian, diabetes-friendly, high-protein, and low-calorie. The company’s website does not indicate if they serve vegan meal kits.
Sun Basket donates food to several non-profit organisations, including, Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, Farmers Against Hunger, and Hope Food Pantry of Monroe County,
#2 Purple Carrot
Delivery areas: Massachusetts
Price: Starts at US$11 per meal
Purple Carrot is a Massachusetts-based and 100-per-cent plant-based meal kit company.
The company offers meals and meal kits to subscribers weekly, where consumers can choose between two packages. Either a three-night meal plan which serves two people ($68) or a two-night meal plan for four ($74).
Meals and menus vary weekly.
#3 Veestro
Delivery areas: All states inside America, excluding Hawaii and Alaska.
Price: Starts at US$11 per meal
Inspired by the healthy meals of their childhoods in Costa Rica, Mark and his sister Monica Klausner co-founded Veestro in 2019 to fill their “personal need of wanting great food but not having much time to prepare and cook it”.
Veestro serves 100 per cent plant-based meals, delivered fresh and cooked. Customers just need to chill, freeze, or reheat as needed.
#4 EMeals
Delivery areas: Nationwide
Price: Starts at US$4.99 per meal
A subscription to eMeals is as low as $4.99 a month for a 12-month subscription. Customers also have the option of a three-month subscription for $35.99.
Unlike other services, eMeals is an online meal-planning service partnered with various supermarkets in the US. The company says this is a more affordable option to achieve the convenience of meal delivery service with more flexibility.
Customers can subscribe to meal plans via a mobile application and choose from grocery partners, including Albertsons, AmazonFresh, Kroger, Instacart, Safeway, Shipt and Walmart.
#5 Green Chef
Delivery areas: Anywhere in the US except Alaska and Hawaii
Price: Starts at US$13.49 per meal
The company offers an assortment of meal kits, including Keto, Vegan, Vegetarian, Mediterranean, and Gluten-Free. Ingredients are pre-portioned from pre-made sauces, marinades, and spice blends.
Customers can choose from flexible plan options with no commitments, and a choice of 24 meal options weekly.
#6 MamaSezz
Delivery areas: Nationwide via FedEx
Price: Starts at US$5 per meal
The idea for MamaSezz came to co-owners Meg Donahue and Lisa Lorimer in 2011 when Meg’s mum Millie was released from the hospital to hospice in the final stages of heart disease.
The sisters then went on to look for stories of people who had survived heart disease and decided to try a whole food plant-based diet based on what they researched. The results were remarkable so they decided to help make plant-based eating more convenient for people and launched the company.
MamaSezz delivers fresh, whole food plant-based meals straight to the customers’ doorsteps, with a mission to heal people “one delicious meal at a time”
The company offers a la carte or bundle options. (Our featured image above this story is of two of MamaSezz’s meals)
#7 LeafSide
Delivery areas: Nationwide
Price: Starts at US$9.99 per meal
LeafSide aims to make healthy eating easy and accessible with shelf-stable, 100 per cent whole food plant-based meals which can be prepared in minutes.
The kitchen offers four meal types: smoothies, soups, sweet bowls, and savoury bowls, each designed by a professional chef and following the nutrition science of Dr Michael Greger.
#8 Plantable
Delivery areas: Currently ships to all zip codes in the US, excluding Alaska and Hawaii.
Price: Starts at US$199 per week for a four-week commitment
Plantable aims to offer balanced nutrition with each meal. Meals are made from complex carbohydrates for slow-releasing energy, plant-based protein for satiety, and non-inflammatory fat for brain and cell health and free from added sugar.
Each bundle includes 12 chef-prepared, plant-based entrees and a seven-day supply of Plantable’s Perfect Protein Powder.
Think we missed anyone?
Let us know in the comments so we can add your favourite plant-based brand!
