Have you ever found yourself at the baby food aisle trying to decide if you should purchase jars or pouches? I definitely have, but I find that I reach for different options based on the reason why I’m getting the food. If I’m picking up something for Darah, I obviously go for pouches because she’s way too old for baby food, but she LOVES squeeze pouches of fruit and vegetable purees.
If I’m just trying to add variety to the meal options at home for Layah, I’ll go with the jars. They are less expensive than pouches so they provide a better value for times when I’ll just be feeding her in her high chair.
Earth’s Best has a great chart that breaks down some of the key differences between jars and pouches and the reasons why you might choose one over the other:
As Layah gets older, I’ll gravitate more toward the pouches because the self-feeding aspect of them is one of the biggest pluses. They are also fantastic to use on the road!
What about you? What percentage of solid food for your little ones comes from a jar vs. a pouch? Do you have a favorite brand of baby food for jars and/or pouches? I’d love to hear what you are buying!
I am a blog ambassador for Earth’s Best, and as such I have received complimentary products as a thank you for my time. All thoughts and opinions express here are strictly my own.
I’ve never thought the premium price of pouches was worth spending money on. Yes, baby can “self-feed”, but to what extent is teaching baby to suck from a pouch a useful developmental skill? Baby can also self-feed with fingers and I’d rather encourage that. We’ve always fed primarily homemade foods, with an occasional jarred stand-in. They cost much less, and the packaging is recyclable. I don’t like buying anything, especially things that have to be repurchased over and over, whose packaging is garbage.
Fair point about homemade food being much cheaper and not using materials that have to be thrown away or recycled. The majority of baby food Layah gets is homemade. It’s a way I can make organic more affordable! But those pouches really are a special and fun treat, and with Darah, I did find that she really enjoyed feeling as though she had control over feeding herself before she had mastered using utensils. I’m also impressed with the variety that is coming out in the pouches. I’m able to offer Darah and Layah some items that I am not creative enough to put together on my own. For example, yesterday Darah enjoyed Pumpkin, Cranberry and Apple together in a squeeze pouch. Good stuff!
But it does bother me to have to throw away the pouches when we are finished. That is wasteful.