Feeding a baby new to the solid-food scene? Trying to nourish an on-the-move toddler? If you’re not already hooked on pouches, here are five reasons why you should try them.

Convenience

If you’ve taken on the task of handcrafting your baby’s meals – chopping, steaming and pureeing every veggie and fruit under the sun – you’ll love how easy it is to grab a pouch. Sure, you didn’t make it fresh from your garden-grown organic crop, but there are many organic brands with little to no added ingredients that offer a very healthy supplement. So when you’re short on time or on-the-go, pouches are the best.

At the beginning, you’ll probably need to help your newbie eater get the good stuff out of the pouch. You can either squeeze the puree out onto a spoon, or buy a special spoon attachment that universally fits on the end of the pouch. Try Munchkin Click Lock Food Pouch Spoons (pictured above) that come with covers for the spoons, just in case your baby doesn’t finish it all in one sitting.

Later, your baby will be able to feed himself the pouch making it a generally mess-free (aside from the occasional time your baby decides to squeeze it before placing it in her mouth) and beyond easy snack or meal.

Speed

Before your baby can use a spoon to feed himself, he can hold a pouch and suck all of the goodness out of it all by himself. That’s right, your babe can eat sweet potato puree solo. This is a miracle. Now, while he chows down, you can be pushing the stroller, feeding your older child, making yourself a well-deserved meal, or whatever you need to do. And, most babies slurp these down fast. In a matter of seconds he can have polished off a serving of healthy, organic veggies and all you had to do was pop the top.

Portability

While you need to keep any homemade purees cold on the go, pouches are shelf stable, meaning you can toss them in your diaper bag without a cold pack. That said, once opened, they do need to be refrigerated and consumed within 24 hours.

Nutrition

Pouches can add new foods and nutrients to your baby’s diet. You might not puree beets yourself, or make a mix with kale and chick peas, but you can find these ingredients mixed together in baby food pouches. This means you can serve a greater variety of flavors and produce. Plus, some pouches, like Plum Organics Mighty Veggie and Happy Family’s Love My Veggies (part of the Made to Matter Handpicked by Target line) boast a full serving of vegetables.

DIY Ability

Love making your own baby food and knowing exactly what’s inside? You can make your own pouches too! You can fill these adorable, reusable Squooshi pouches (pictured above)with your own purees or smoothies – get creative with your own healthy and yummy blends featuring your baby’s favorite flavors. Cleaning isn’t as tough as you might think, thanks to a bottom zipper that opens the pouch up wide. While you could use a funnel, pastry bag or steady hand and pouring from a pitcher, to make things easier, a special pouch filling station is offered. Another option is to go with the Infantino Fresh Squeezed Station, which helps you quickly fill BPA-free one-time-use plastic pouches.

What’s your baby’s favorite pouch? Tell us in a Comment.

–Julie Seguss

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