Snacks in the Mail!

There are three things I really really enjoy getting in the mail. They are, not necessarily in order of importance, letters from loved ones, books, and... food. Online grocers, fresh fruit straight from the groves, and snacky items.

Last summer I stumbled upon Nature Box. For twenty bucks a month I could get five "full sized" nutritious snacks delivered to me, and the first box was half price. I spend that much or more every month on munchies anyway so I thought I could give it a try. The day after I signed up I started getting Facebook invites and friends telling me in person about it. One could almost think it a conspiracy, that these guys are suddenly everywhere.

At five in a box for twenty dollars, unless math has changed recently, that's four dollars a bag. The quality of the snacks is what you would find buying snacks at Sprouts Market or Whole Foods. There are no trans-fats nor high fructose corn sweetener. Many are vegan friendly. Some are good but not four dollar good. Others are well worth the price. Whole grain fig bars, chia crackers, nut and fruit mixes, etc. I was considering dropping the service; the snacks were different every month but I didn't get to chose and so I received a few snacks that I didn't care for. None were bad, but some were not worth the price even considering the wholesome ingredients. But last month they made a great change: you can log on to your account and make substitutions for snacks you prefer. Naturally I chose more chocolate.

Recently I did a web search for other monthly snack deliveries. Nature Box has got their marketing down pat, but they are not the only ones on the block. For the most part, the prices are the same, twenty dollars and up a month.  There are some which deliver your ordinary every day junk foods, but unless you were merely trying to limit yourself to what comes in that monthly box, I don't think this is a better deal than plugging money into the office vending machine every day. Plus, the YouTube videos showing people unpacking their first box didn't encourage me: the boxes were filled with junk foods which are popular in some circles, but not appealing to me. Myself, I will stick with the nutritious snacks: there are plenty to chose from. One could easily go broke trying them all.

So I selected just a few to try. If twenty a month is outside your budget or if you don't get the munchies every day (I find that hard to relate to!) there are two offering smaller packages for as little as six dollars a month, with the option of deliveries monthly, every other week, or weekly. Do the math and you see some clever marketing: weekly delivery comes to twenty four dollars a month for smaller snacks, so in that regard Nature Box is the better deal. Graze and Nibblr each deliver four "portion controlled" snacks of nuts, dried fruit, whole grain crackers and the like. The portions are about the size of a vending machine snack, so at six dollars a delivery, about the same cost as four trips to the vending machine, maybe a little more (but after all, delivered to you!) I found the snacks in each -- arranged in four trays inside a box slender enough to fit most mailboxes -- tasty and of higher quality than standard vending machine munchies. Of the two I've preferred the Graze snacks, especially the clever combinations such as "Key Lime Pie" (sponge cake pieces, lime infused raisins and dried meringue pieces). On the other hand, you have to go to their website for full ingredients lists  (why, I don't know) while the Nibblr snacks have them on the package label. A trip to the health food store's bulk foods section would be far more economical, if less convenient, but these are fun to try. I could see these as a fun gift, and they offer gift subscriptions. Who doesn't like opening their mail box and finding a box of food from a friend?

There are many other subscription boxes I've yet to try. There are junk food options, international candy options, gluten free and paleo diet - you name it, it's probably out there, and if it's not there are websites with instructions on how to start your own company. There are monthly clubs (most of which require a three month commitment at $50 to $100 a month) for artisan cheeses, chocolates and bacon. Bacon of the month club! I kid you not. But I think it will be a while before I try that. While I love the idea, I'm only one person, and that's a lot of cabbage for some cheddar, a lot of bread for some bacon, a lot of smackers for a few snackers. Now stop groaning at my puns and go check them out.