NatureBox Review: June 2012

Subscription boxes have made frequent appearances on various blogs this year. They seem like a fun idea - get a surprise box of different goodies each month. However, none of the well-known boxes sounded quite right for me. While I love eye makeup and am getting back into nail polish, I rarely use other beauty products, so while GlossyBox and BirchBox sound interesting, it didn't seem worth the investment for me. I love the premise of UmbaBox - delivering handmade goods each month. However, My style is dissimilar to the creator's, so I am not sure how well the delivered items would suit my taste.

(Note: A few other new box subscriptions I might enjoy have recently come to my attention, but they were unknown to me at the time of this purchase.)

Enter NatureBox: healthy snacks delivered to your door each month. Bingo! Sounded perfect for me. I have always been a snacker, but made a conscious decision to start bringing fruit and healthier snacks to work in the last few months. Recently, I switched to working four 10-hour days each week (and having Fridays off). I leave work at 6:30 and get home by 7:30, so I am usually starving by the time I get home. I tried bringing more snacks, but I was quickly getting sick of my options. See, I find a snack I like, get instantly obsessed, buy a ton of it, and then get sick of it within a few weeks. Then it sits around in my pantry until its turn comes back around. Bad habit, I know.

Case in point: KIND bars. I was starving and decided to try out a cranberry bliss bar at work one day (our cafeteria has a focus on healthy foods). It was so good. I went online and bought four full boxes of bars in different flavors. After several weeks of having a bar daily, I got tired of them. We have since reconciled and I am working through my boxes at a slower pace, but still. There are a lot of bars left. That's me.

When I read that NatureBox delivers five different full-sized healthy snack packs each month, checked some reviews online (all very positive), and looked through what snacks they provided in previous boxes, I was sold. I signed myself and my parents up (I knew they would love it - especially my dad).

My June box actually arrived in July, since I signed up in late June.

My Review - June 2012 NatureBox

Top (left to right): citrus kick almonds, harvest fruit granola, organic mighty mix

Bottom (left to right): apple rings, sun-ripened white peaches

Apple Rings

The apple rings are delicious. Sweet and chewy, just as described. The box also came with a recipe for cinnamon apple ring muffins, which sound delicious... but I'm not sure there will be any apple rings left by the time I get around to it!

No sugar, fat, cholesterol, or sodium. Serving size: 28g.

90 calories (0 from fat), 23g carbs, and 2g dietary fiber.

Sun-Ripened White Peaches

These were soft, chewy, and unsweetened. I was not a fan of the dried white peaches. Then again, I am fairly picky about my dried fruit. But I didn't like the texture and these weren't really sweet enough for my taste. This was my least favorite item in the box.

No sugar, fat, cholesterol, or sodium. Serving size: 1.5 pieces.

95 calories (0 from fat), 25g carbs and 3g dietary fiber.

Harvest Fruit Granola

Best thing ever. Seriously. This granola is so, so good. There were nuts and dried fruit mixed in - it was so soft and delicious. I really hope they follow through with their idea to offer some popular snacks for sale in larger quantities, because I would buy this. Tons of it. Definitely my favorite in the box - it was hard not eating everything at once!

No cholesterol or sodium. Serving Size: 1 oz (28g).

120 calories (60 from fat), 6g fat (1g saturated), 16g carbs, 2g dietary fiber, 7g sugar, 2g protein. 

Organic Mighty Mix

This was a mix of raisins, dried fruit, nuts, and other seeds. This was honestly not my favorite - it was a bit of a weird mix of sweet, salty, chewy, and crunchy. I'm not keen on raisins and the other mystery dried fruit was just okay. The seeds and nuts were decent but I think they would have been better as a separate snack. It is nice that these were not sticky at all, so they would be nice to bring as a trail mix of sorts on a hiking trip.

No cholesterol. Serving size: 1/4 cup (30g).

130 calories (70 from fat), 8g fat (1g saturated), 15mg sodium, 14g carbs, 2g dietary fiber, 10g sugar, 4g protein.

Citrus Kick Almonds

These almonds are covered in a citrusy coating - they look like sugared almonds but they definitely don't taste like them! "Citrus Kick" is the perfect way to describe them - they pack a punch. Jacob didn't like them, but I actually did enjoy them. I wouldn't say they were among my favorite snacks, but they are interesting for sure.
No cholesterol. Serving size: 1/4 cup.
170 calories (130 from fat), 14g fat (1g saturated), 280mg sodium, 7g carbs, 3g dietary fiber, 2g sugar, and 6g protein.

Overall
As you can see above, the snacks were very hit or miss for me. I think it would be perfect either for someone who is less picky than me, or for a family/group of people with different tastes - that way none of the snacks go to waste. You can see the contents of their other past boxes here. I am not sure if I will continue my subscription - I may try another box and see how I like it before making a final decision.

The size of each snack package was decent - midway between sampler size and chock-full. Each package had 3 - 4.5 servings (you can see the serving sizes above).

Possibly because shipping is built into the price, the snacks are on the pricey side. $19.95 for 5 snacks equates to $3.99 per bag, which is about what I would expect to pay at Whole Foods or (insert name of fancy/organic grocery store). Then again, they pick a variety for you and ship it directly to your front door, so there is something to be said for that. Also, with the discount for multiple months, it will cost less per bag overall.

I was impressed by their customer service - friendly, helpful, and professional. I had quite a list of questions for them and they were all answered satisfactorily.

Bottom Line
I would probably recommend this for those who love everything granola/nuts/dried fruits. For someone like me who is a little pickier, I'm not sure it's worth the money.

Notes About Dietary Restrictions
- I called to inquire about if the boxes are vegan/vegetarian. The friendly lady who answered informed me that while the next few boxes are scheduled to be vegetarian, there is no guarantee. They also contain some honey/dairy products so some snacks will not be vegan.
- However, they are looking to provide customizable boxes for these types of restrictions - vegan, allergies, no nuts, etc. Contact them directly to be put on a list, and they will notify you when these options are available.

Pricing/Options
- $19.95 / mo for month-to-month subscriptions. Use referral code "REFER25" to get 25% off your first box for monthly subscriptions only.
- $99.75 / 6 mo - essentially you get one month free.
- $179.55 / 12 mo - includes three months free.

Want to Sign Up?
You can sign yourself up through their website and they recently added a section for 3 or 6 month gift subscriptions here. You can also sign someone up for a gift subscription and keep paying until you choose to stop. Shipping is included in the price, except for the 3 month gift subscription. Please note that this is a relatively new service and they are frequently changing their policies/features, so be sure to check their site for the most updated information.

If you want to order your own NatureBox or find out more, visit their website here.

Have you tried NatureBox or found any other interesting box subscription services? Let me know if you decide to sign up, and how you like your box!

Note: This is my personal opinion and is in no way sponsored by NatureBox. Just like every review I write, I will always provide my 100% honest thoughts.