Meal kit delivery services in the UK: An evaluation of the nutritional composition of meals

Objective To examine meals provided by meal kit delivery services and to evaluate their nutritional composition.

Research Methods & Procedures In this cross-sectional study, the nutritional composition of meals (n 497) from meal kit delivery services in the UK, was considered. Energy and nutrient content were compared to dietary guidelines; meals were profiled for fat, saturated fat, total sugars and salt content.

Results There was a large range in the energy and nutrient content of meals. The levels of saturated fat per serving ranged from 0.4–28.0 g (Mdn = 9.0 g), and salt content ranged from 0.2–6.4 g (Mdn = 2.2 g). Over half of the meals were profiled as high for fat (51.3%), saturated fat (62.2%) and salt (64.4%). Notably, protein content per portion was high (Mdn = 34.0 g), and dietary fibre content was low (Mdn = 6.4 g). Meals, which had been distinguished by the providers with ‘health-based’ descriptors or tags, had a better nutritional profile for fat, saturated fat and salt, than other meals; nevertheless, many ‘health-based’ meals profiled high for salt (46.5%) and saturated fat (40.4%).

Conclusions Recipes from meal kit delivery services should be revised to improve their nutritional composition; specifically, reductions in salt and saturated fat content and an increase in dietary fibre are needed. Given the variation in the nutritional composition of meals, work is also needed to ascertain the main factors influencing selections made by consumers, and the relevance of guidance and information to support this.