Maybe they’re making RTD in the US because they’ve identified that as their biggest market
With the size of the states is easily possible that the journey from factory to port is as far (or further) than Austria to the UK.
@Tim_Huel… are we right to assume that you’ll be sourcing ingredients globally (including from China, India and Spain) shipping those ingredients to the US, bottling Huel RTD, then shipping the finished product to the UK?
This is a major own goal in my opinion and will affect my purchasing decision. I’ve been a big fan of Huel from day one but this just isn’t the sustainable food product I’d hoped for.
Perhaps it’s time to update the mission statement.
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It’s interesting.
When the US launched the website would route people to two urls.
Americans > us.huel.com
English > huel.com as normal.
I noticed the other day that when I visit Huel.com I now get rerouted to uk.huel.com, whilst the American website appears to have taken over the ‘main’ huel.com domain.
What I really don’t understand is this though… if it’s made in the US surely it’d be cheaper there? Yet it’s $99.00 for a single purchase, or £10 more expensive than it is after being shipped half way across the planet to be sold in the UK.
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Yes, that was my thinking too.
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Austria to UK is 2000km. Factory to port in USA is <150km
Yes, unless we created a totally independent supply chain for the 80 countries we sell Huel in, with ingredients that are solely grown, harvested and processed within those countries we have to. Clearly that isn’t realistic, I’m sure you agree, because not all the ingredients required are grown within all those countries. If they were the logistics of this would be difficult for a conglomerate to handle.
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The availability/suitability of locally grown ingredients isn’t something we can ever agree though is it? For obvious reasons I’ll never know the details of Huel’s procurement and will never be able to speak from a position of knowledge. If you say the Chinese Oats are ‘better’ to use than UK Oats, how can I disagree?
That aside…
I don’t think you can claim to aim for a minimum impact on the environment any more, which is fine - after all good nutrition is the core aim for all of us - but that part of your mission statement hasn’t kept pace with Huel’s development and has sadly become misleading.
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I fail to see again why European store RTD is so much more expensive if it’s made closer by in Austria and shipped from the same warehouse? Isn’t the shipping of the product much more expensive from USA to UK then it is from Austria to UK?
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This is the position I’d take also, and always has been. Huel is still a company I’d view as environmentally conscious, but I feel as though the cover page stating Huel is solely focused on environmental issues and vegan blah blah blah is a little misleading.
A company with a sole focus on environmental issues wouldn’t have offered an RTD, because an RTD is the least environmentally friendly way of offering the product (nutritionally complete shakes) I can think of.
500ml of Huel RTD taking up its respective volume is so much less calorific than 500g of the power for the same volume. I appreciate there’s the “Ah yes but maybe someone who would have chosen the big breakfast sandwich next to it” point has been made, but hey, maybe they won’t? Maybe they’ll still go for that delicious sandwich over the shake, because that’s what’s tasty and hey, while on the subject, maybe a locally made sandwich with local vegetables and a little meat is more environmentally friendly than shipping one bottle of 80% water 20% powder across the planet?
I’m sorry, I’ve just never got it and probably never will.
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Is this right @Tim_Huel?
UK £74
USA $108
EU €106
24 of The UK RTD works out cheapest after shipping from the States?
Yeah…weird…
not for me. its kind of expensive
waaay too much
UK is cheapest for all their products. It used to made sense…
As I’ve said above we would love to have equal pricing but there is so many factors playing in it would be impossible.
- Different taxes in different countries
- Varying exchange rates
- Varying courier costs
- Varying fulfilment costs
It’s a difficult one and because our sites are so public it makes all our prices public, you can go to FX.com and make comparisons and someone is always getting a worse deal than someone else. The prices of the RTD reflect the differences described above.
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Britain is a third world nation…we can’t afford as much as everywhere else…
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Cheaper than a Tesco’s meal deal 
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Yeah I guess courier costs are cheaper here because we’re such a teeny weeny country… Lighten up guys they’re just adding new products and becoming a bigger company, I for one don’t wish to sit here and watch my main source of nutrition flounder in obscurity forever.
Viva la Huel! 
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I think the RTD Huel in a plastic bottle is a good choice for people who wish to use Huel but otherwise can’t prepare it or access water. For example on a busy (12 or 14 hour) shift or when operating away from base without the ability to carry my personal bag. I’m including pan-european drives as well where I can have Huel literally on the go whilst driving or as a passenger. To be sustainable the RTD is to be used when preparation of a regular Huel drink is not convenient or possible. I welcome the new product range and intend to use it as mentioned. Huel is a business and like any business strives to make a profit, and research and design new products to expand its range.
We all make unsustainable choices everyday but try to limit them. Going to the extreme we shower once to twice a day but dont reuse the water; we use cycles manufactured abroad (carbon footprint); we dont all have smart controls for our central heating; we have pets etc. The bigger picture being that the plastic is one of the most sustainable on the market in the UK and as mentioned above the price per bottle is good.
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I too feel very disappointed with Huel that they’ve brought out this ready mixed drink. I thought the proprieters were more enviromentally aware and principled rather than just trying to increase their profits. There is no reason why people can’t carry water around and mix the powder into their bottle instead.
Also disappointed about the sale of xmas gifts and clothes, also against environmental sustainability and just for the sake of increased profit
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I missed that. Sounds a bit rubbish.