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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Business
Shane Hickey

DARK SECRETS: Revealed how convenient recipe boxes really measure up on price | Rare Historical Photos

Japanese-style chicken karaage and fried rice delivered as a meal kit by Hello Fresh
All the right ingredients: but do these kits really add up when it comes to cost? Photograph: Sophia Evans/The Observer

Consumers who subscribe to “recipe box” delivery services can save up to 74% of the cost of the meals by buying the ingredients separately in the supermarket, research by the Observer has found.

Analysis of the contents and prices of some of the most popular meal kits shows that buying the individual ingredients is far cheaper – even if you have to get whole bottles of sauce or packets of rice.

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