In Depth Baby Product Reviews Led by a Pediatrician
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The Best Babies's Baby Food Storage System for 2024
Need a baby food storage system? Our lineup ranks the best 7 baby food storage systems available today. Our experts scoured the market, checked dozens of popular options, and then purchased the most promising for extensive hands-on testing in our quest to determine the best. Homemade baby food lets you feed your child quality nutrients; therefore, a handy storage system to store those yummy meals can make all the difference. We evaluated each product for essential factors, such as material, capacity, ease of cleaning, etc. Each storage system offers a different style, from pouches to freezer trays and containers. We are confident that our review and details will help you find the perfect option for your family's needs and budget.
The OXO Tot Glass Baby Blocks with Silicone Sleeves ranks high among the competition. Made of borosilicate glass, this contender has benefits and versatility. It is durable, tolerates sudden temperature changes, and is less likely to break from drops and falls. Plus, concerning health and safety, it is less likely to leach chemicals, a potential concern with plastic containers. The 4-pack of 4 oz sizes is ideal for purees, and we appreciate the volume markings on the container's side to help track your baby's consumption. This system includes a freezer tray for better organization. The snap-on plastic lids make this system portable for meals on the go, and we like that they can move from the freezer to the diaper bag without spilling a drop. These containers provide longevity and are useful after your baby moves on from soft foods.
Although the glass portion is dishwasher-safe, we recommend hand washing to protect the volume markings. We also advise handwashing the plastic lid and silicone gasket to prevent potential degradation related to high temperatures. Despite the handwashing process, we think these containers are easy to clean and have no troublesome nooks or crannies. So, if you prefer glass over plastic and fancy a system with volume markings to track your baby's consumption, we highly recommend this product. If you love everything about this set but want more sizes for the money, consider the reasonably priced Wean Green Baby Starter Set.
The Wean Green Baby Starter Set includes two 4 oz Wean Cubes, two 5 oz Wean Tubs, and two 5.4 oz Wean Bowls, creating a diverse feeding system to fit various needs and at a wallet-friendly price. The containers are tempered glass, a material type that is stronger and more resistant to thermal shock than regular glass. For instance, these containers are freezer-safe and can endure high heating temps without a problem. The set also includes plastic snap-on locking lids that are reliably leak-free. Without the tops, these containers are oven-safe up to 250° F, which adds versatility. The glass portion of the containers is dishwasher safe, but we recommend handwashing plastic parts as always.
The silicone seal on the lids will need some occasional cleaning and thorough drying to prevent mold growth caused by trapped moisture and food particles. Besides periodic maintenance requirements, we love the Wean Green storage system. We consider the system's components versatile and will serve your pantry well beyond the baby food stage. The various sizes are excellent for lunch box condiments, dips, yogurt, and more, plus reheating food away from home. So, if you seek functionality and versatility on a budget, we think this system is excellent. We also recommend the OXO Tot Glass Baby Blocks with Silicone Sleeves, which is slightly easier to use. Plus, it's constructed from durable borosilicate glass.
The Squeasy Gear Squeasy Snacker is somewhat of a unicorn in a market flooded with disposable pouches, and we see this option filling a niche. This reusable pouch is lightweight and durable food-grade silicone, ready for on-the-go snacking. The wide neck allows you to turn the bag inside out for easier cleaning, plus the unique spout system is relatively simple to clean. We appreciate that the system has two spout styles: a “no-spill” or a “free-flow” mode. These options allow you to tailor the pouch's performance to your child's age. The free-flowing lid is similar to most squeeze pouches with a small opening to suck food through, and we like to use this option for older kids who tend to have more motor control. The no-spill insert is perfect for younger users who are still learning to hold a pouch without squeezing out the contents.
If you don't use the no-spill spout, younger children may squeeze the pouch too tightly, causing a big mess. Also, younger kids may find getting all the food out of the pouch challenging. Despite these minor drawbacks, we think these reusable pouches are travel-friendly and deserve a place in your food storage lineup for trips away from home. But if you are looking for disposable squeeze pouches and an easy way to fill them, check out the Infantino Squeeze Station.
The Infantino Squeeze Station is our favorite pouch-filling system. It is easy to use and allows you to fill three bags simultaneously without spilling or overfilling. The Squeeze Station includes ten disposable pouches; we advise ordering extras to keep them on hand. The station itself is top-rack dishwasher safe, and since it won't contact your baby's food, we have no problem cleaning it this way (although we recommend handwashing the upper tubes). You can purchase additional Infantino Squeeze Pouches in 50 or 100-packs.
The filling system works best with very smooth purees sans chunks; otherwise, you risk clogging the spout. The spout hole is smaller than the size of a pea, so anything more substantial than that will cause issues. Attempting to force out larger chunks will cause leaking at the spout's top or near the pouch. We recommend using these pouches with smoothly pureed baby food to avoid big messes and wasted food. So, if your baby food maker can whip up a silky smooth puree but needs a simple way to fill pouches, then this station is a good find. Those who simply want a squeeze pouch and one that is reusable should consider the Squeasy Gear Squeasy Snacker.
Compare Products
Our review includes products of various materials, including glass, silicone, and plastic.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
How We Test Baby Food Storage Containers
We've been testing and analyzing baby food storage systems since 2013. In our quest to determine the best options available, we researched and purchased each product in this review for testing. Our testing involves hands-on testing with side-by-side comparisons to assess essential metrics like material, ease of use, and ease of cleaning. Also influencing our analysis and ranking of storage systems is feedback from parents and caregivers regarding their preferences and ease of use.
Pouches can be handy for meals on the go.
Credit: BabyGearLab Staff
Why Trust GearLab
Our founder, Dr. Juliet Spurrier leads our baby food storage team. Dr. Spurrier is a board-certified pediatrician, a mom of two kids, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Utilizing her background as a pediatrician and mom experiences, she helps select products for testing and review and is instrumental in creating BabyGearLab's safety standards. Also contributing to our food storage system team is Senior Review Editor, Wendy Schmitz. Besides being a mother of two, Wendy's education and background help her analyze and test products with safety and ease of use in mind. She has also extensively researched the use of plastics and potential endocrine disruptors in containers used for contents intended for human consumption, helpful knowledge that nicely folds into our review as we evaluate the competition.
Our team of baby gear experts hands-on tested each product in our review.
Credit: BabyGearLab Staff
Analysis and Test Results
The market is overflowing with storage system options (your kitchen might be, too), making decision-making more challenging. Lucky for you, we've done the work and hands-on testing to evaluate the options, so you know the pros and cons before making your final decision.
What's the Best Value?
When considering the value of a food storage system, we suggest thinking beyond the soft food stage. The Wean Green Baby Starter Set is an affordable option considering its cost per item, and it offers longevity past the puree stage by packing small snacks or condiments once your child goes to school. Or, if you seek a more convenient product for specific on-the-go situations, consider the Infantino Squeeze Station. This option includes ten disposable pouches, and although additional bags will require an extra investment, the overall cost is still affordable. The system is super easy to use and clean, thanks to being dishwasher-safe. Even grown-ups can appreciate a squeeze with applesauce or a smoothie inside, making them a quick, on-the-go option for the whole family.
Material
Glass, silicone, plastic, oh my! What material is best? Our review includes three main types of food storage containers: freezer trays, lidded containers, and food pouches, each of which comes in various materials. Ultimately, the storage system and material you select may depend on your lifestyle, and we suggest having a few options on hand for different purposes.
Among the competition, the OXO Tot Glass Baby Blocks with Silicone Sleeves ranks high in this metric, thanks to its borosilicate glass construction. Compared to other materials, we can consider this material practical and versatile for storage needs and eco-healthy as it does not absorb odors or leach chemicals into food. Plus, it's super easy to clean. Nonetheless, we do recognize that glass has a few downsides to consider. It can be more expensive, but we think the price of glass is worth the peace of mind and safety when feeding your baby. Also, glass is heavier and more prone to breaking than other materials, such as silicone and plastic. If you notice a chip on your glass storage container, even a small one, it is best to retire it, as a small chip can be unsafe or impact a product's performance. But, if you're mindful and sensible when using this option, we think it can last and remain part of your food storage arsenal.
The BEABA Clip and Wee Sprout Nature's Little Squeeze are plastic, ranking the lowest in this metric. Although plastic tends to be lighter and less expensive, perhaps a quality you seek, we prefer to use other materials, like glass or silicone, mainly due to potential concerns of chemicals leaching into food. You may not be surprised that plastic contenders rank lower for eco-health.
We recommend reading more about plastics in our article, Are Plastics Safe for Bottles and Sippy Cups?, to learn about the potential problems and concerns related to plastic. We believe issues concerning plastic in children's products are significant and worth evaluating before buying.
Infantino Squeeze Pouches
Credit: Infantino
Ease of Use
As your baby's appetite grows, you'll need to invest in a baby food storage system. With varying styles and designs on the market, it's hard to know which option is truly useful. Lucky for you, we've assessed the multiple features and characteristics that make a product ultra-convenient, then evaluated and scored the contenders.
The OXO Tot Glass Baby Blocks with Silicone Sleeves ranks high and wins another metric among the opponents. This option may be minimal in appearance, but it offers valuable features. It has a container design with volume markings and is easy to fill. The lid is simple to operate, a material that can tolerate temperature changes from the freezer to refrigerator (or vice versa), and the set stacks nicely in its organizational tray. This combination of features allowed it to score high.
Unfortunately, the Kiddo Feedo Freezer Tray ranks the lowest. We noticed that the tray's silicone lid doesn't snap on or stay securely compared to other competitors' tops. This issue reduced the product's score in this metric.
Although most of the products in our review are dishwasher-safe, some have designs with nooks and crannies that can trap food remnants.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Tip: Consider labeling your containers or pouches with the date, meal, or ingredients, and possibly your child's name to avoid misplacing it. Life with little ones can get busy, and if you plan on preparing and freezing meals for future use, this information may come in handy.
Ease of Cleaning
It's easy for dishes to pile up, and since a container, tray, or pouch will be an additional item to clean, we considered how easy the containers are to wash. We compared the competition for ease of cleaning, looking for areas that may trap food debris or require special brushes to clean. Those that fall short and are more challenging to clean will likely go unused over time.
Among the competition, the OXO Tot Glass Baby Blocks with Silicone Sleeves and the Wean Green Baby Starter Set rank the highest for ease of cleaning. As dishwasher-safe glass options, these containers are a breeze to clean. However, we recommend handwashing the plastic lids to avoid overheating the plastic.
On the other hand, a reusable pouch is more challenging to clean, thanks to nooks and crannies that can be hard to reach by hand and even missed by dishwashers. Therefore, the Wee Sprout Nature's Little Squeeze ranks the lowest. This option has a spout, lid, and zipper closure that can trap food remnants, requiring more hand gymnastics and brush tools to clean. This process is exponentially more challenging when food is left to dry inside. The Squeasy Gear Squeasy Snacker is another pouch option that ranks lower than others; however, this contender has a wide neck that allows you to turn the pouch inside out, making the cleaning task more manageable.
Wee Sprout Nature's Little Squeeze.
Credit: Abriah Wofford
Conclusion
Finding the perfect baby food storage system can take some planning and consideration, especially if you plan to make baby food. We believe our list and research details can help you make the right decision for your family and goals. While each product has pros and cons, any system can help make life easier by extending the shelf-life of freshly prepared meals.
