M&S launch meal kit food boxes to rival Hello Fresh after Morrisons also launch an at home box

Marks & Spencer is today launching an at-home recipe box to rival the likes of HelloFresh and Gousto.

The upmarket grocer says it is going to ‘shake up the recipe box market’ with the new product, which contains three meals for two people and costs £32 plus £4.99 delivery, and is available UK-wide.

The offering is a rival to the market leaders, HelloFresh, Gousto and Mindful Chef, which cost between £47.75 and £82 for five days’ worth of dinners, or £2.98 to £6.83 per portion. 

It comes after Morrisons also launched a home recipe box this week, giving customers the chance to cook up chilli, sausage bakes and spaghetti bologonese.

Packed with vibrant flavours and pastes from M&S’ new ‘Cook With’ range, the dishes on the introductory menu are: a Chicken Tikka Traybake with Spiced Potatoes and Peppers, King Prawn Paella with Bell Peppers and Garden Peas, and Pork Loin Medallions with a Creamy Mushroom and Garlic Sauce.   

A spokesperson told FEMAIL all their recipes are ‘super quick and easy to prepare with clear step by step instructions, using amazing M&S produce of the highest quality, including 100 per cent British chicken and pork, sustainably sourced king prawns and the freshest fruit and vegetables.’ 

April Preston, Director of Product Development at M&S added to FEMAIL: ‘This is a bit of a game changer; amazing quality ingredients, super simple recipes allowing you to create the most delicious dinners from scratch. 

The recipe box sector has been one of the few industries that’s done well as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Mindful Chef, saw a 452 per cent rise in customers between March and May, while Gousto, had to stop accepting orders from new customers and hired an extra 400 people to keep up with orders, the Financial Times reported.  

Hello Fresh, which is based in Berlin, saw its number of US customers increase 89 per cent to 2.6m in the first three months of the year, and is expected to grow fifty per cent in 2020.

And it seems supermarkets have caught onto the trend, with Morrisons also launching a kit this week.

Priced at £30, which includes next-day or nominated day delivery, the Morrisons family recipe box, which is available across the UK, works out at just £1.50 per meal per head because it contains enough food to cook five meals for a family four.

Boxes contain family favourites including spaghetti bolognese, mixed bean chilli with wedges and rosti topped cottage pie – along with simple-to-follow recipe cards.  

The supermarket says the box – called Five Meals to Feed a Family of Four – is designed to provide quick, easy and affordable homemade meals that families can cook from scratch at home and make mealtimes a social, family experience.