I don’t get the negativity about moving to sachet form. Sachets seem like a brilliant step forward for Huel, far simpler, consistent portions/quality, less time required, less mess, easy to execute and transport, less storage space needed, and easier to keep organised rather than big airy bags.
Hopefully it becomes cheaper in the long run too, and I imagine sachets can be sold in retail stores far easier than big bags. This is a great move IMO for both customers and business-wise. The pros far outweigh the very specific con scenarios, though even then the solutions are simple like using 1.5 sachets instead of 1.
What’s frustrating to me personally is the discontinued flavours and forced upsell to pots for specific flavours like Carbonara, along with the downward trend of generic, uninspiring, 3D printer-like flavours being pumped out recently and focus on pasta pasta pasta. It’s really pushing me more and more to other vegan meals that have more diverse, less processed, whole food ingredients.
Bricks and mortar retail sales of convenience products have been one of their biggest growth sectors of late so I wouldn’t expect that to change anytime soon TBH and you’re right, the sachets gives them another option for this too at a more competitive price point than the pots could be in store.
My personal experience with Hot & Savoury products was that I usually found them very good initially but over prolonged use, they became a bit samey and bland. I’d prefer to see something like a few core strong selling flavours but also a selection of periodically rotated new flavours.
The other concerns would be how and if they can resolve their packaging sustainability issues and if the rise of convenience sales begins to jeopardise the business model for older core products.
More waste, forced portion sizes. Not that hard… Less storage space? How? It is supposed to be the same content…
The use of more packaging CAN’T be cheaper due to the use of more material. They MAY keep the prize the same initially but I doubt they can/will do that in the long run.
And saying “1.5 sachets instead of 1” is STILL a forced portion size. How do you not see that? Oh and again MORE waste…
And btw: you can also say “non-consistent portions/quality” is a “specific con scenario”. Because in this thread many people mentioned they never had a problem with this!
It will depend on a variety of factors - if they use ‘plain’ design on the pouches similar to powder ones and like the mock up - it will be significantly cheaper to produce and use a lot less ink / get more bags on a roll of material / no resealing mechanism etc. They will also be able to produce multiple flavour packs on the same print runs further reducing costs. If they use full ink coverage like the current bags - then it will only have minimal savings I guess.
Also using 1.5 sachets instead of two or whatever isn’t gonna achieve a consistent serving size either is it, as you’ll still get an inconsistent mix of powder and solid (if that really is an issue, which I never found it to be).
I’m not adverse to sachets from a convenience and practical point of view. And with regards to an enforced portion size. Isn’t that what happens in so many food scenarios? All ready meals and meal deals come in one size portions. You don’t have bigger or smaller sandwiches or pot noodles etc. Yet they sell by the million and I don’t see anyone complaining about it.
It’ll be easy to see how it pans out though. I wonder if some people who complained of the inconsistency just actually didn’t like the product and still won’t. Mac and cheese was my favourite. I thought I preferred the original variant, but I soon became adjusted to the new taste and texture. I actually buy a lot more h&s than I expected to when it first launched but generally only chicken, carbonara and Mac & cheese. I liked some of the quinoa ones when they launched but when the pasta came out I preferred that.
I would like some of the noodle pots in sachet form and also maybe some rice sachets.
If there was a risk that Huel would stop selling bulk powders direct to online subscribers I’d avoid making anymore shop purchases. It’s nice to have Huel in shops, but it’d be best not to encourage it.
Understood! We are always working so hard behind the scenes to bring you the best products we can! Understandably after this, we’ll need to take a breath and go back to the drawing board to look at whats next and how we can improve this but this is the feedback I’ll pass on for the consideration of our future products
Of course, we understand this to be a big concern for a lot of people. While not recyclable, The pouches account for less than 3% of the product’s carbon footprint. Where we can as technology gets better we will do our best to roll with the times and make the best changes we can without harming the quality of the product.
Well, therein lies the rub, the technology to recycle MLP flexibles already exists, the willingness to put it and pay for the infrastructure in the UK at least, doesn’t. Local councils definitely take the path of least resistance when it comes to recycling and come rule changes expected to be introduced from October 2025 - that’s only going to get worse. The revised schemes will mean that the full cost of collecting, sorting, recycling and disposing of household packaging waste will be placed on packaging producers rather than with local authorities. Your council tax probably wont go down though.
I I appreciate the explanation. Really good of you to set it out like that.
As long as my beloved pasta bolognese is available to me on the uk I’m happy. Also fiery chicken as I like that too.
However portion sizing is a MASSIVE issue. I often want 600 kcal of H&S.
I really wanted 500 kcal sachets, not 400 (my meals are 500 kcal, not 400!), but hey… I can always open them all at once and pour them into a big plastic box, like I used to do with the big sachets.
In the end: more and more packaging, all because of people who don’t know how to mix, or pour into a plastic box and mix in this box.
We hear you! After careful research, we introduced Hot & Savoury Meal Packs to address consistency issues in our multi-serve pouches. Separation between pasta pieces and powder often led to uneven portions, affecting taste, texture, and nutrition. Meal Packs ensure a perfect portion every time—no scooping required.
While the previous pouch offered flexible portioning and compact storage, the single-serve format improves the overall experience. For larger servings, simply use two packs. If decanting, store in a cool, dry place in an opaque, airtight container.
if it’s something you’re willing to answer, how do the logistics look on your end cost wise? my intuition here is that it probably does cost more to produce the newer format, and the pricing parity is more of a transitional thing than a value that’ll last through the next round of price adjustments?
I didn’t order often, but I bought in bulk, and I liked the pouches - yes, I had to shake them/mix them, but that wasn’t a problem. Now I see that all flavors I like are being delisted. It was fun while it lasted, Huel…
It’s also ironic - Mac ‘n’ Cheeze was listed as a “favorite” product before the company changed the formula. That turns out to have been a very bad choice, as this formerly beloved flavor is now being discontinued.
Oh I’m terrible, sorry I didn’t get back to you sooner!
Sachets came later when we started to analyse H&S Pouches at the beginning of the year. Sachets solved the issue, but weren’t that much more expensive to manufacture, which means that we could offer them at the same price as before to make sure our Hueligans weren’t just hit with a price increase and us asking them to move to Pots. Not a good experience and something we have actively tried to avoid.
We have specifically changed the format of H&S to a format that is the same price per serve as your current pouches. We have actively made a decision to launch a format that costs you the same
