Food Product Reviews for Kids

There are many products in the grocery store nowadays that are geared towards making our lives easier. Especially parents of young kids. Easy, already-made food that is designed to cut out the work it takes to make something for your kids. Yes, we are all over-worked, with most of us holding down a job, household, kids, bills, you name it, all the while faced with three meals a day for our kids, some that are packing lunches each day to take to school. So are these pre-packaged foods really a good deal?

I don't think so. Lets look at some of the more popular brands out there on the market.

Smucker's Uncrustables

These pre-made, frozen kids favorite can be found in any local grocer's freezer.Uncrustables are peanut butter and jelly, in bread, with the crusts already removed. Just take one out of the freezer, let thaw for a couple hours and voila! Instant sandwich. Plus, it comes in a variety of flavors to please everyone. But, now comes the downside. The price. In researching these I found the average price for a box of 4 was around $2.69. Thats about 67 cents a sandwich. For 5 to 6 dollars you can buy peanut butter, jelly, and a couple loaves of bread and make 20 sandwiches. Sure, it takes about 2 minutes each time, but I think in the long run I'll take that extra time to save some money.

Lunchables

Kraft foods have come up with an even better one. Lunchables are a small, easy-to-pack box that generally includes crackers, small slices of some type of meat, and an equal amount of cheese. A small candy bar is for desert and usually a single-serving type of juice is included. The one problem is that my 6 year old could easily eat 2 of these in one sitting, theres barely anything in them! And, as usual, price is a problem too. At around $2.25 to $2.50, I could easily buy the ingredients for way less and throw together the same product.

Juice Boxes

Juice Boxes can be decent when it comes to packing your kids lunch. Easy, simple, and convenient. But for the house? Nah. I'd rather spend my money on a good bottle of juice and dole it out the old fashioned way. Especially since I like to water my juice down anyway to keep the sugar content as low as possible. Don't get me wrong, they're great for when you have a party, or a lot of little ones running around thirsty all the time. Just a waste of money in my opinion.

Convenience food can be just that, easy, quick, and convenient. But for me, I'd rather take the time and make the same product, and save money on the process.