Maybe there could be some kind of scheme where there is a way to send the bottles back to be re-used. Either there could be pre-paid postage bags to send them back in, or every recycling centre could have a special bin for Huel bottles. Maybe these things are unlikely to happen soon but they are theoretically possible in the long term if Huel becomes very popular.
Or we could just accept the fact that a certain percentage of the population is going to want convenience foods, so a certain amount of waste is perhaps inevitable anyway. Those who care about the environment can use powdered Huel, but those who donāt care could use pre-bottled Huel and at least be healthier.
Otherwise itās a bit like saying thereās no point in teaching people how to drive safely when what we really should be doing is getting rid of cars altogether because cars are bad for the environment. Cars are here to stay, so letās try to drive safely and not run people over. Similarly, maybe convenience foods are here to stay because some people just want to grab something off the shelf and go (in fact, in many situations people NEED to do that). Isnāt it better that they drink Huel than drink coke and eat crisps?
We canāt stop people wanting to fly abroad on planes, but maybe they could make the airplane food healthierā¦
Weāre early adopters of Huel, weāve seen the promise and possibility and leapt at the lifestyle whilst also being beta testers as they honed the formula and packaging.
For mainstream appeal though, Huel is going to have to go pre-bottled because 1) most people just wonāt be bothered with messing about with sacks of powder every day and 2) pre-mixed stops it being a weird powder thing and turns it into a just another drink, but a really healthy one.
Iām over simplifying and generalising, sure, but you only have to look at the success soylent is having with their pre-mixed lines. Theyāre substantially more expensive (over time) and take up way more space than the bags of powder - but theyāre also incredibly popular.
Bars do not replace a bottled Huel. Bars add convenience and remove nutrition. Bottled Huel would add convenience without removing nutrition. Bottled Huel will be meaningless imo if and when we can subsist on bars alone.
I wholeheartedly disagree with the premise of pre-bottled Huelā¦
However, I could definitely see it stocked on shelves, and imagine itād do extremely well in places such as small supermarkets, WH Smithās, and Boots throughout cities where people often buy these āmeal dealsā every day before heading to the office.
If the nutrition of the bar was the same as the powder then when you opened the bar it would all fall out on the floor. The increased ingredients like sugar are essential to bind the powder into a solid.
I wish I could affordably buy a whole box of those Huel samples, so I could have a couple meals in my bag ready to mix at all times. As long as you can rip off a corner and turn it into a funnel, you have bottled huel anywhere you buy bottled water.
Not quite. If people are going to use bars for convenience when out, they still need to drink something. If those people end up buying bottled waterā¦do you see where Iām going with this?
If your getting your healthy meal and calories from a huel bar while youre out, youre not going to buy a drink of huel as well are you, the bar makes the drink redundant so yes they would buy a bottle of water for a drink because thats what they want, a drink, not a meal
The problem with bars that ready-to-drink doesnāt have is that some sub-par nutrition is required for binding purposes. Ready-to-drink can be just as good nutritionally as powder, bars canāt (I donāt think). Zero calorie syrups may possibly allow that result with bars but Iām unsure.
You can do this already with small plastic containers. Or if you wanted a pouch type product, I am sure you can find non-clear resealable pouches and buy them en mass online.
@IcyElemental You are assuming that pre-bottled Huel would be nutritionally the same as user mixed Huel. Huel staff advise mixed Huel is stored chilled for 24 hours max. I know people on the forums have gotten away with it for longer but bottled Huel is going to need a 6 month shelf life as a minimum. I donāt know what changes or processes would have to happen to achieve this but its possible the product may not be any better than the bar at this point.
@Marcus Drinking Huel is not the same as having a drink. Sometimes I feel a bit dehydrated after a 90g portion of Huel which from what I have read is down to the fibre content. And sometimes, you simply want to eat something. So eating a bar and drinking water is not the same experience as drinking Huel.
The reason for this expiration after mixing is exposure to bacteria (and in the case of mixed Huel, oxygen so that bacteria can grow, those feasibly anaerobic bacteria could be problematic too). Unfortunately sterilisation can be difficult with 'lents due to the required temperature affecting micronutrient content, but it shouldnāt be impossible. Sterilisation followed by adequate sealing would allow Huel powder to remain mixed without spoiling (at least in theory).
Big no, hereās why, using a powdered product (baby formula) as an example.
1 litre ready made aptamil is Ā£3.70 at Tesco.
900g powder makes 42 litres (for a 6 month old) and costs Ā£11.
for the same amount in litres it would cost Ā£155.40
like 14 times the cost for the same amount?
While I image Huel shakes would be great for a while to gain interest, if you stocked them with the bulk buy powders, anyone with half a brain would start buying those soon enoughā¦