Before having kids I rather naively thought that the whole 'busy mum' thing was a bit of a cliché. Surely I'd have enough hours in the day to get everything done?! But now I've got two boys, nursery runs, work, endless amounts of washing and tidying and the occasional attempt at having a social life(!) it seems that a busy mum is exactly what I've become!
Being so busy means that I don't get to spend as much time as I'd like on preparing the boys' food from scratch. So when the lovely people at My First Savsé offered us a chance to try their new baby food, you can imagine how excited I was to hear that it's 'as good as homemade!'
Our first impressions of the pouches were all really positive. The packaging itself is really nicely designed - it's bright, bold and beautifully simple. Each flavour has cute pictures of the ingredients on the front and there's even a little clear window incorporated into the design so you can see exactly what's inside (always reassuring!)
Because he's still so little and so new to the world of weaning, I'm really conscious of what foods I'm giving to Jacob and always check the packaging to see how suitable it is for him. It was so refreshing to read the ingredients on our My First Savsé pouches and find nothing but 'proper' food listed - no added sugar, no preservatives, no colours or flavourings, just real fruit and veg!
Not only is it great that these pouches only contain natural ingredients, but the fact that they're organic too is a huge added bonus.
There are plenty of organic baby food companies out there though, so what makes My First Savsé different from the rest? Well, put simply, these pouches are a total game changer because the food is cold-pressed rather than heat pasteurised. In fact it's actually Europe's first cold-pressed baby food, which means there's nothing else like it on the market right now!
But why does it matter? Basically, the way that the food is made has a huge impact on its nutritional value. Making ambient baby food involves using high temperatures to kill off any nasties - however, it also gets rid of a lot of the good stuff. Instead, My First Savsé uses a process called HPP (High Pressure Processing) to banish any bacteria, as well as cold-pressing their fruit and veg to lock in all the goodness. I know which one sounds better to me!
Because he's still so little and so new to the world of weaning, I'm really conscious of what foods I'm giving to Jacob and always check the packaging to see how suitable it is for him. It was so refreshing to read the ingredients on our My First Savsé pouches and find nothing but 'proper' food listed - no added sugar, no preservatives, no colours or flavourings, just real fruit and veg!
Not only is it great that these pouches only contain natural ingredients, but the fact that they're organic too is a huge added bonus.
There are plenty of organic baby food companies out there though, so what makes My First Savsé different from the rest? Well, put simply, these pouches are a total game changer because the food is cold-pressed rather than heat pasteurised. In fact it's actually Europe's first cold-pressed baby food, which means there's nothing else like it on the market right now!
But why does it matter? Basically, the way that the food is made has a huge impact on its nutritional value. Making ambient baby food involves using high temperatures to kill off any nasties - however, it also gets rid of a lot of the good stuff. Instead, My First Savsé uses a process called HPP (High Pressure Processing) to banish any bacteria, as well as cold-pressing their fruit and veg to lock in all the goodness. I know which one sounds better to me!
Anyway, my opinion doesn't really count in the grand scheme of things - the big question is, what did Jacob think?! There are currently 7 flavours in the Stage 1 range and he was lucky enough to try 6 of them within his first few days of weaning. Here's how he got on:
- Apple
We decided to start off with the most simple flavour first (it literally contains nothing but 100% apple purée) to see how Jacob got on. There was no hesitation though - he liked it instantly and sat open-mouthed, patiently waiting for more until it was all gone! It was the first time he'd ever managed to finish a whole pouch and since it smelled just like fresh cloudy apple juice I can see why!
- Pear, Pea, Apple & Spinach
It took Jacob a few tries to get used to this one - he wrinkled his nose up to begin with but once he had a taste for it there was no stopping him. He kept reaching for the pouch and grabbing at the spoon while he was eating and once again, ended up polishing off the whole lot!
- Blueberry, Prune, Plum, Apple & Banana
The first thing I noticed about this one was how purple it was and how much it smelled like banana! I really didn't think he'd be quite as keen on this but although the mix of flavours sounded quite strong, it actually tasted quite mild and fruity. Jacob only managed to eat half of the pouch this time but he clearly loved the taste. In fact, it even got to a point where he was actually shouting at me because I wasn't loading up the spoon fast enough for him...!
- Coconut, Cacao, Apple & Banana
I would've happily shared this one with Jacob - it smelled amazing! There's a real sweetness to it and you can definitely smell the coconut and cacao. I noticed that the consistency of this one was slightly more runny than the others, which I assume is because of the coconut milk in it. Jacob didn't seem to mind though and took to it instantly. Once again he polished off the whole pouch but this time he made virtually no mess (by this point, I think he'd realised that he didn't want to waste any!)
- Cucumber, Kiwi, Kale, Spinach, Apple & Banana
Up until now Jacob had only tried very sweet purées, so I thought it would be interesting to introduce some different flavours. I really like that My First Savsé have mixed things like spinach and kale in with more familiar foods like apple and banana to give babies a gentler introduction to new tastes. The familiar tastes meant that Jacob didn't bat an eyelid when I gave him this pouch (and once again, he ate the whole lot!)
- Carrot, Pumpkin, Apple and Beetroot
Since Jacob had enjoyed all the flavours I'd given him so far, I thought I knew the drill by now... But he reacted totally differently to this one! He was eager to taste it but once the food touched his lips, he turned his nose up, shuddered and looked confused. I've got to be honest, I'm not a fan of beetroot or pumpkin so I would've been a bit reluctant too! He was very slow to get going with it but I could tell he was interested in figuring out the flavours so I let him carry on. He enjoyed it in the end but spent a lot of time playing with the food, waving his spoon around and blowing raspberries while he was eating!
Overall, I think it's pretty safe to say that these pouches were a huge hit with Jacob! I loved that he was able to sample such a great range of different flavours from such an early age and was really surprised at just how well he took to them (and how much he ate!)
The biggest selling point for me is the fact that they're so full of goodness and so much fresher than other baby foods. I'm also a big fan of the convenience factor and love knowing that there are healthy options available if I need to just grab a pouch for Jacob when we're in a rush.
At £1.70 each, they're a little pricier than other baby food pouches on the market but since Jacob liked them so much we'll definitely be buying them again.
You can find My First Savsé in Morrisons, Ocado, Whole Foods, Harrods, As Nature Intended and Planet Organic (but don't forget - because the food is cold-pressed you'll need to look for it in the chilled aisle, not the baby food aisle!)
For more info go to savse.com.
For more info go to savse.com.
Disclaimer: Product(s) in this post were gifted to us for review purposes.