Green Review-Squooshi Reusable Pouches

Squooshi Reusable Food Pouches



Squooshi sent me this lovely pack of goodies.  Two 4.5 ounce pouches and two 2.5 ounce pouches.  Each with their own lid and comes in a cotton bag which allows for storage and pouches can get air circulation.  I have to note that the box was very small and had no plastic in it at all except for these pouches.

Here is a little info from their site:

Squooshi reusable food pouches are BPA-free, Phthalate-free, PVC-free, and Lead-free.

Squooshi reusable food pouches provide more flexible and healthy nutrition options: fill with your favorite grain, veggie, legume, dairy, and fruit combos!

Squooshi reusable food pouches reduce waste: no more throw away food pouches piling up in landfills and contributing to air pollution!

Squooshi reusable food pouches save you money on your food bills: pre-filled pouches cost between 1.50-2.25 each!

Squooshi reusable food pouches save energy: empty pouches require a lot less fuel for shipping and most pre-packaged food travels over 1,200 miles before it reaches your table!

Squooshi reusable food pouches are easy: in the car, at the park, in your kiddos's hands, less mess from broken jars, spoons, and trash!

Here you can see my arsenal of reusable items for my girls lunches.  From plain white linen napkins I use to wrap a sandwich, small Velcro fabric bags my good friend Theresa made my girls and a few fabric snack bags I have bought over the years. Anything we can use to hold food is put into this container.

My review:
At first I was thinking these would be perfect for my girls. I have two older girls which could use the larger ones and I have twins that are younger and could use the smaller pouches.  Well that didn't work out so well.  The small pouches are way too small and not enough for my 8 year old twins.  Good for a toddler but not for 8 year old. But that being said the larger size was perfect for all 4 of my girls.  When Monday came along I washed them in warm water (never ever heat plastic especially when food is in them because it will leach any plastic/harmful additive into the food) and let them completely air dry. 

I started with the small ones and found it was really hard to get applesauce into them without getting applesauce everywhere.  Just too small to pour from a container and was even hard to use a teaspoon to spoon applesauce into them. So far not liking this.

The larger two pouches were no problem to get food into. Easy peasy food in and zipped shut.  I sent my girls on their way to school and waited till they came home to give me some feedback.  They said they loved them and kids at school were asking where they got them.  I think the flashy colors, animals and had a "way cool" look to them. 

I then took them in the kitchen and rinsed them out completely and put in warm water with soap.  Thought I had cleaned them all up and let them air dry.  After a few hours I checked and nope not the case.  Applesauce is stuck in the zip style seal.  If I had small kids and a bottle brush this wouldn't be a issue but I don't have either of those.

Would I recommend these?
Yes and no.  If you buy pouches often from the store then you would save lots of money by using Squooshi pouches. If you have no issues with using plastic products then this would be great.  If you would love to have control over organic and healthy food then this would help you encourage your kids to eat healthy and organic food. 

BUT if your anything like me (a bit obsessed with green living almost borderline crazy) then you might not want these.  These are BPA free but who knows if they have any additives in them.  They are a little too expensive for me to buy online considering I would have to pay for them and shipping. If I could buy them local I might not hesitate to buy them. If I bought them new online I would be spending $19.99 for the pouches and then $4.50 for shipping. End result I would be spending $6.12 a piece for them.  But that being said my girls like them and want the in their lunches. On one hand I want to keep my kids healthy, live sustainably and avoid all plastics or harmful packaging. But on the other hand I have to remember my girls are kids and life is about learning and having fun.  These are fun and pretty darn cute. 

Jenny Bradford from Conscientious Confusion says "I am doing a Squooshi review tomorrow and I LOVE them. So much. I have been looking for an alternative to the "disposable" food pouches forever and they are perfect, as far as I can tell. I tried a silicone version about a year ago and it was TERRIBLE so these are a lifesaver."

She goes on to saying " I just use really hot water and a bottle brush. Since my kids are so young (2 and 3 yrs old) I still had a baby bottle brush and I just use that. However, I also do not let the food sit in the pouch very long. I try to rinse them out as soon as possible, although I've gone as long as 7 hours before washing them.  In my review, I am going to mention that although they are plastic, I am less concerned about chemical leaching because they have to be handwashed and therefore aren't exposed to the high temperatures in a dishwasher which typically facilitate chemical leaching. I know they're not perfect, but my readers are typically people who aren't even 100% convinced about "being green" at all, so this is still way better than the "disposable" option."
As soon as Jenny post her review I will add it here for you to read as well.

So check Squooshi out for yourself and who knows maybe this would even be a great gift for Christmas!

NOTE: Squooshi were gracious enough to send me these pouches free of charge and didn't pay me one cent to do this review. These are my honest opinions and Squooshi had no part in them.  My blog is non profit :)

UPDATE: 4/10/14
I have since stopped using these. After a few uses it was really hard to get the food out of the zip closures. Although they didn't mold I wasn't taking any chances.  I'm not recommending these any longer due to the short life of these products. Cute idea but not practical.