Nonprofit meal-kit company Lemontree seeks to feed more New Yorkers
NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - New York City has so many food options but eating healthy isn't usually the most affordable option. But Lemontree, a nonprofit, now offers meal kits that include a recipe and all the ingredients needed to prepare a home-cooked meal.
"Financially, it helps me out a lot. It helps me save way more money than I usually spend on groceries so it's been pretty good," Wendyann John, a Brooklyn mom, said.
John said that cooking for her 3-year-old son Hendrix is now easier, thanks to Lemontree.
We've seen this concept from companies like Blue Apron and Hello Fresh, but Lemontree meals only cost $2 per person, compared to $10 for other commercial kits.
"Every Wednesday, we send out a menu that has three recipe options by text," Lemontree community manager Kasumi Quinlan said. "Families can order and then the delivery arrives the following Wednesday when they can pick up their food and cook it."
The meals are all balanced and nutritious, from chicken parm with green beans to veggie pasta.
The company, which started last year, delivers about 600 meals a week to local families. For now the meals are only available for pickup at 10 different preschools in low-income Brooklyn neighborhoods. Only staff and parents of children enrolled in the schools can sign up for meals.
"To be able to have a meal that comes to the school and I can just bring it home, it makes it a lot more affordable and it also makes it a lot more doable," Jessica Figuly, who works at one of the selected preschools in Red Hook, told FOX 5 NY. "We're actually able to cook more often."
Lemontree plans to spread its pick-up locations to churches and community centers by the end of the year.
Lemontree's CEO said the company has raised more than $2 million in donations to date. Its goal is to be able to serve 12,500 meals a week.
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