HelloFresh Canada Review 2020

Forever. Not literally, but your food can sit on your doorstep in the hottest sun the Canadian prairies have to offer (+30 degrees Celsius) and still be very chilled when you bring it in. I tested this with my first package because I was worried about the obvious negative consequences. That specific time, the freezer bags were roughly 30% thawed. Almost every other time (even in summer), when I opened my Hello Fresh box, the freezer bags/meat part of the kit was still 100% frozen!

I have read online on a couple of other HelloFresh review pieces, about the odd time where food was not at its ideal ripeness when opened. I personally have not seen that at all. Even “fussy goods” like avocados have been excellent for us. The cuts of meat especially have been of the highest quality.

The only fly in the ointment that I can personally report after nearly a year with HelloFresh is that one time when it was -42 degrees Celsius, our parsley leaves got semi-frozen and didn’t look particularly appetizing when we opened one kit. All-in-all, that’s not a bad worst-case scenario from where I’m coming from. The world isn’t meant to operate in -42!

The bottom line is that HelloFresh is a massive company that delivers food boxes all around the world—in all climates. They’re pros at this stuff.

No! All prices include delivery charge.

At this time Hello Fresh does not have specialized options in these areas. The closest you’ll find is the vegetarian option. They do say that they are working on adding these options to their lineup.

Yes. Like most subscription services, Hello Fresh really wants your business. They know the best way to get your business is to have you enter in your info on Day 1, and if you like it, you’ll be less likely to take your info out, than to put it in after the fact.

At the end of the day, if you’re complaining about free food, I’m not sure we’re ever going to understand one another!

Like any other type of courier delivery, there are always options. Obviously it’s easiest if someone is at home to accept the box during the day; however, HelloFresh can also drop the box off wherever you specify in your delivery instructions.

Hello Fresh also recommends asking a helpful neighbour or local business to receive the box on your behalf. Personally, I’ve recommended to lots of people to simply get your week’s meals delivered at work. I’ve never detected a strong sent from the box, and I know for a fact that the ice pack + engineered box combo will hold up all day in +30 Degree heat. (I tried it the first week just because I’m overly cautious with food.) Consequently, just snagging the box at work and carrying it home with you can save you a lot of time. Finally, most apartment buildings now have some sort of couriered package delivery system in place, and arrangement can almost always be made.

I have to admit that this isn’t my area of passion. As a dude that lives in a pretty harsh environment, I’m pretty lenient when it comes to criticizing how my avocados got to me!

That said, here’s what HelloFresh has to say about the matter:

“Here at HelloFresh, we pride ourselves on providing our customers with fresh, high-quality ingredients. We work with suppliers all across Canada and source local ingredients wherever possible.”

and

“The focus of HelloFresh is on helping our customers make those first steps towards cooking well-balanced meals at home. While we source organic whenever possible, what we do concentrate on is what produce looks and tastes best. We also use many of the “Clean 15” ingredients in our boxes.

We work with trusted, experienced, and sustainable business partners to ensure high quality, seasonal, and farm-sourced produce is delivered to our customers at peak freshness.

Eating organic is certainly one way of eating better; however, the focus with HelloFresh is more on helping customers have a positive cooking experience in the kitchen.”