British meal kit retailer Gousto, supplying subscribers with recipe kit boxes containing ready-measured ingredients and easy to follow recipes, is trialling healthy Meal Kits as emergency food parcels at food banks in Hammersmith and Fulham. A 12-week trial is being rolled out to see if there's a better impact on the mental health and wellbeing benefits of Meal Kits over simple food boxes by providing more accessible cooking options.
The parcels are all vegetarian and provide ingredients and instructions for different meals which all contain two of your five a day, as well as a balance of ingredients and nutrients. Each meal is designed by Gousto's nutritionist, Ellie Bain, and takes no more than 30 minutes to prepare and cook.
"Everything we do at Gousto is driven by our purpose to have a positive impact on people and the planet," explained Gousto chief executive and founder Timo Boldt. "Using our expertise in creating healthy and balanced mealtimes, we hope to have a real impact on the health of the nation starting with this ground-breaking pilot.
"We're proud to work with the Hammersmith and Fulham Foodbank, part of the Trussell Trust network, and help provide immediate support for the community in and around our London HQ. We believe in the power of nutritious home cooking to boost health and wellbeing, and we can't wait to see how this pilot informs future strategies for food banks."
The move comes through a new partnership between Gousto and Hammersmith and Fulham Foodbank, one of the busiest food banks in the UK, with the support of Imperial College London Self-Care Research Unit who will be assessing the mental health and wellbeing benefits of the change. It's then hoped that the data and information gained from the trial will help to inform the approach of emergency food providers across the country.
Image credit gousto.co.uk