Lunchables: How Bad Are They Really?
First let me just say that this is not a Cart Confession. I have never purchased a Lunchable in my life nor do I intend to. My children know not to ask for them when we are grocery shopping. We whisk right past that section of refrigerated casing when in the supermarket.
But last week at NuVal, while I was reviewing a list of scores for one of my clients (Price Chopper in Schenectady, NY), I came across the score for a Lunchables product. Scoring Lunchables takes a lot of effort because they are complex – there is more than one product in the packaging. So we are just beginning to score them at NuVal. This was the first Lunchables product I had seen scored. Like a bad car accident on the side of the highway, I just had to look.
Lunchables Lunch Combinations – Ham & American – NuVal score of 5. Ouch! Included in the package are Cracker Stackers, Lean Ham, Kraft American Cheese, Ritz Crackers, Butterfinger Bar, and Capri Sun Roarin Waters Wild Cherry.
The amazing thing is that when I was googling this product to try and find an image to include for this blog post (since I obviously do not have these in my refrigerator), I came across a Mommy Blogger who was raving about how happy she was that there was now a healthier Lunchable. I do not want to embarass that Mommy Blogger so I won’t include a link here to her silly post.
If you are the kind of person who enjoys horror flicks and gore, you probably want to see more. So here you go…
Lunch Combinations – Bologna & American – NuVal score of 6! Wow, the Bologna version actually scores better than the “Lean Ham” version. Included in this package are Cracker Stackers, Bologna made with chicken & pork, Kraft American cheese, Ritz crackers, and Nabisco Chips Ahoy chocolate chip cookies.
In doing more research on the Lunchables phenomenon, I found a great blogpost from the Washington Post about the new “more wholesome” Lunchables.
Back in the days B.C. (Before Children), when I worked for Big Supermarket Company, I once spent a day “riding stores” with one of the company’s most experienced marketing managers. We were in a very wealthy area of Connecticut when he told me about Lunchables. You see, the store we were in was #1 in the entire supermarket chain for Lunchables sales. Lunchables are not cheap and in this particular high-rent town, the Lunchables just flew off the shelves. They were the Designer Lunch for privileged children.
Fast forward to today and I don’t hear my kids asking for Lunchables too much. I don’t think they have a huge presence in our elementary school or summer camp. However, we do see some children eating Uncrustables.
Guess what? They score just as low. They get a 5.
I know that most of my loyal A Better Bag of Groceries readers are not the Lunchables- or Uncrustables-buying type. But it’s kind of fun to look a the scores – in a sick sort of way – isn’t it?
Now get off your laptop and go make your kids (or yourself) a nice healthy lunch with whole grain bread, lean protein, fresh fruits and vegetables!
Question of the Day
Have you ever purchased a Lunchable or an Uncrustable?
Posted by: Melissa 24 comments
Posted in: Lunch
Tags: Lunchables, Uncrustables
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 7:52 am
wow, i’ve never pondered the health aspect of lunchables too much. it was all the over processed food in them that turned me away. it’s interesting to know just how unhealthy they are.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 8:09 am
I probably used to eat a lunchable a day when I was in Elementary school. They’re a great idea, too bad they just aren’t healthy and use probably some of the worst factory farmed meats.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 8:24 am
I just can’t even imagine serving my kids (who don’t even exist yet!!) something so…processed. But then again, I ate Lunchables as a kid. My generation was the first to have them and they were so “cool”. I have the best parents in the world, so it is not as though they were being neglectful. They simply didn’t “get it”. This just shows how important it is to educate as many folks as we can about healthy living!
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 8:32 am
WOW. That is truly appalling. As a 20-something with no children, I feel sort of Soap-Boxey looking down my nose at the pre-packed lunches, so I feel very validated that you have the same feelings– and the NuVal scores to back them up! Amazing that it would be so much more affordable to pack a wholesome lunch with fresh fruit and veggies.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 9:27 am
I will never buy those for my kids! I have a friend who sends her child to preschool (where apparently they have a long snack time in the 2.5 hours that she is there) with a lunchable every day. Yuck! My 4 year old visited her grandparents who gave her an Uncrustable for lunch. She (thankfully) hated it. She loves the crusts on her whole wheat bread and hated the sugary taste of the inside. I’d rather take the few minutes to make the kids something nutritious!
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 9:36 am
Never purchased lunchables ot unchruchables. They consist of to many process foods and are very unhappy. I would never give to any child. It doesn’t take that long to prepare a healthy snack or lunch.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 9:39 am
It’s funny. Iwouldn’t buy them even when the boys kept on asking for them. Then one day, with coupon, I was able to buy them each one free. They tried them. Didn’t finish them. Then declared we didn’t have to buy those again. Love it! Guess they decided they really were not missing anything.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 10:38 am
Let me just say that you’re exceptionally skilled at wielding guilt. My Cuban and Jewish family would be proud. Having said that, I appreciate the information you’ve shared.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 10:52 am
Wow. My sister in law allows my two nieces to take lunchables to school twice a week. I knew that they were not a truly healthy lunch, but seeing the numbers puts a whole new perspective on the situation.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 11:17 am
In my opinion, Lunchables should not even be considered real food — overly processed, high in sugar and sodium. I know we are all time crunched, but does it really take THAT long to make a sandwich and toss it in a bag with an apple — even if you add a small bag of chips and a cookie, the whole thing HAS to be healthier (and cheaper!) than a Lunchable. Thanks for giving us the NuVal score to prove it.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 2:06 pm
We very very very rarely had lunchables growing up. I think, if I could remember that well, I could count the number of time I’ve eaten lunchables on one hand. Mom said they were too expensive.
My sister starting buying her own lunchables last year and gained 10 lbs. Of course, she NEEDED to gain the weight, since she was pretty skinny in an unhealthy way, but lunchables certainly weren’t the nutritious and healthy way to gain needed weight.
I was at the store last night looking at lunchables and imagining how I could make a nutritious, grown-up version of lunchables on my own. Then I realized that I was thinking about bento lunches…
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 2:16 pm
I’ve never purchased either. I bet there will be some true “healthier” versions in the future.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
So, why not do a Trading Up post on how to make your own “healthy” lunchable
My friend does them all the time for her kids.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 8:02 pm
I wish Lunchables didn’t exist. My son asks for them all the time. My compromise with him is that he gets one the last week of school. I’ll also buy him the Nacho version when we go to the Drive In Theater once or twice a summer instead of going to the concession stand there.
I do make a version of “Mommy Lunchables” using lean ham, 2% American cheese and crackers. My daughter loves this. My son still wants the real Lunchables.
on Jul 12th, 2010 at 8:32 pm
A what or What??..do not know what they are. Must I remind you, I used to make our yogurt from scratch.
on Jul 13th, 2010 at 8:36 pm
I knew they weren’t healthy, but they are really unhealthy…thanks so much for the information! I like the idea of making your own…
on Jul 23rd, 2010 at 10:38 am
Whoa those stats are terrible! I knew they were unhealthy but I didn’t think they were that bad!:-?
-Erika
(PS – Yes, I have purchased/ eaten Uncrustables a few times, but never Lunchables – they have always grossed me out!)
on Jul 26th, 2010 at 1:42 pm
Uncrustables aren’t that bad – they’re peanut butter (healthy protein), jelly and bread. same list of ingredients as if you purchased white bread, grape jelly and peanut butter at the store.
on Jul 31st, 2010 at 9:40 am
ARE YOU KIDDING ME JULIE??? Uncrustables contain some of the worst chemicals in the jelly such as high fructose, and other extremely bad things for you, when i have a pb and j its with organic bread, jelly and peanut butter, and that’s good for you. Read the lables on almost every jelly in the supermarket if you don’t believe me.
on Aug 27th, 2010 at 10:49 am
NO I’M NOT KIDDING YOU. I eat normal white bread and peanut butter and jelly from the store. I do not churn my own. Thank you, though for the comment…
on Dec 15th, 2010 at 2:41 pm
Ok….define unhealthy. I used to eat these things all the time in school. Now im a perfectly healthy person. I would eat a lunchable before i ate a hamburger from McDonalds. Food is food…everyone needs calories…just get your kids out exercising
on Jan 26th, 2011 at 1:56 am
Back in the day (over a decade ago) everyone I knew in elementary school ate those things, and there were all those ads on TV so I thought it might be good. So one day I managed to convince my mom to buy one. It took her a while to actually get it, she always complained how it was “too expensive” and “not nutritious.” So that one day I actually got to try Lunchables, it was the ham, cheese, and crackers one. Man, THAT WAS NASTY. From then on I stuck to the school lunch. The cafeteria lunch and my mom’s sandwiches actually tasted a lot better than that Lunchables crap.
on Mar 15th, 2011 at 1:07 pm
I have never purchased either the lunchables or the uncrustables. My son is always asking for the lunchables since there must be some kids that have them at school. After asking a little more information, I discovered that he was really more interested in the idea of the cute little shaped meats. I decided to just make my version of the lunchables. I made a spiral ham and cut it into cookie cutter shapes along with cut block cheddar, whole wheat crackers, we allowed the oreo cookies and then added carrots and fruit on the side. He was tickled pink that he now had his “lunchables”. We have also made a pizza version using the whole wheat thin bread rounds. He loves that too and he is getting a much healthier version.
on Nov 17th, 2011 at 1:18 am
I think that everyone has there own opinion. If you dont like something dont eat it right? one persons disliking for an item should not ruin it for everyone else, nor take all the time to blog about it! sorry this just bugs me, i dont like to buy my children these foods as well, but not everyone can afford healthy all the time!!