If people just budged properly they would be fine. That being said, I'm curious to try soylent and have purchased a week supply of it. Could be fun to play with.
I upvoted you because I agree that it is actually pretty easy to eat healthily for pretty cheap if you are willing to manage it correctly.
I will say that you seem to have a surprising low daily caloric intake, though. I have a high metabolism, but sit in front of computer all day and I still need 2500 calories/day to maintain my weight.
I have Soylent for around 40% of meals. I know it's more expensive than my regular diet, but it's quick and healthy food. Of course you can argue that your meals are very low effort, but even just grocery shopping and planning meals is something I'm happy I don't have to do now.
It makes my life simpler and more enjoyable and that's worth the price to me.
There's also an issue of taste. I dislike the taste of many foods considered healthy for me. I try to eat the ones I enjoy but many are expensive depending on the season.
For example, I cannot stomach green beans. Attempting to chew them results in vomiting within my mouth. The smell of them alone is repulsive to me.
If I can have a bland solution to eating healthy - that's a win for me. The only thing preventing me from trying Soylent is the price of buying enough for 2 people, since all of my current meals are shared. Having to buy normal groceries and Soylent would nearly double my monthly cost for foodstuffs.
I'd have a healthier, cheaper diet if I only had to buy food for myself.
E:
Not to mention every "cheap alternative healthy food" to Soylent I see mentioned only targets a small section of nutrients and vitamins and often ignores proteins altogether. They aren't well rounded - even if they're healthier/cheaper than McDonalds. Soylent strikes the "well rounded" healthy food. Without the hassle of having to buy groceries or prepare the food.
I would purchase a days worth but I am not going to toss eighty odd bucks on something I might not like. At least mealsquares has a sample pack at twenty five that is about my threshold for trying specialized food products.
it depends on where you live, over here a medium sized bunch of organic kale is $2.99 at whole foods by itself, and $0.20 won't get you that many oats, let alone honey or cinnamon.
The advantage of things like Soylent is that the price is the same no matter where you live, whether you are in a small town with great produce where it's cheap or whether you live in an expensive downtown with limited access.
Late reply... can you estimate the number of hours per week you put into planning, shopping, cooking, and cleanup? If so, and if you can you assign a $ value to that time, it would be an interesting exercise to compare such _total_ costs (averaged per meal) versus the same calculation using Soylent.
I would suppose (based on doing 50% Soylent for a few months) that for an all-Soylent diet, planning and shopping time goes to zero, "cooking" time to 5 min/day (to shake up one bag in the pitcher), cleanup to near-zero (put glass in the sink). Very possibly the reduction in time, valued in dollars, makes Soylent cheaper.
Well, time = money, so unless you make that every week and have 0 daily prep/cook time, allowing you to amortize the bulk prep time across the week, Soylent probably saves you at least 8 hours a week assuming 20 minute prep/cook time per meal (I feel like, due to slop time, 20 minutes is about the minimum for this, unless you got really, really efficient with how you stored ingredients).
Further, Soylent is about $9/day, and your food system is only a bit less expensive at $6.20/day. In contrast, I've lived for months off of DIY soylents that were $3.50/day.
Food is super dead cheap to produce, In most places the bulk of cost of food is transportation and profits accounted for every level in the chain of exchange of goods between farmer and the consumer.
This is largely true in poor and developing countries. The food prices go up when fuel prices go up. I don't see this change even in the case of Soylent.
That takes time to put together. Even if you come back saying, "It only takes XX minutes to do!" that's still time it takes. Soylent is aimed at people who really don't have that time (or think they don't). People who have multiple jobs.
I notice that the instructions for Soylent stopped mentioning salt problem somewhere between v1.3 and v1.5.
How much sodium to eat is very controversial, but if you're eating sodium, you should know that they took the extreme low-sodium position. The current version contains 1640mg of sodium per pouch, which is about half the typical intake. This creates a risk of deficiency, especially when exercising or in hot weather. The symptoms of sodium deficiency are headaches and lethargy; the test for whether those symptoms are caused by sodium deficiency is to eat salt (~1g mixed with food or water) and see if they go away quickly.
I tried soylent for a while and found the experience fairly unpleasant. I switched to http://www.mealsquares.com/ instead. Warmed up, they taste like a dense brownie. The thinking detailed on their website and the level of care that clearly went into choosing a safe recipe gives me a lot more confidence than soylent did eg
> First, there's nothing especially risky or unusual in MealSquares; they're made from a broad variety of ordinary, healthy whole-food ingredients like milk, rice bran, dates, etc. See our nutrition page for the full list. And unlike many commercial baked goods, MealSquares are free of artificial preservatives and flavoring agents.
They also don't require mixing so they work much better as a camping/climbing food.
Soylent is a different product from MealSquares. MealSquares likes to talk about "whole-food ingredients" but the whole point of Soylent is to get away from that and base the formula on what the body specifically needs... as opposed to what whole food ingredients happen to come close and taste decent together.
Soylent is simple to make, simple to drink, and has a pretty neutral flavor. They tweak it at each new version so the issues with the early versions have been eliminated. Some people won't like that approach and will prefer a "whole food" thing instead, which is just fine.
2000 calories of it is 130% of your daily saturated fat...and 126% of total fat.
Eh. Soylent you could get away with eating it all day [theoretically]. MealSquares you need to supplement with other foods due to the fact content or you'll end up screwing your health with that much saturated fat.
> The American Heart Association recommends aiming for a dietary pattern that achieves 5% to 6% of calories from saturated fat. That means, for example, if you need about 2,000 calories a day, no more than 120 of them should come from saturated fats. That’s about 13 grams of saturated fats a day.
Its 6g per square, so you really shouldn't eat more than 2 and get the rest from other sources. At which point, its a minority of the calories you consume.
That's 50% more expensive than soylent, and has a significantly shorter shelf life. If you want something approaching food while backpacking etc. you may want to just go for MRE's.
Also xylitol, lactase, potassium citrate, rice bran, and vegetable glycerin are not really 'whole foods' by most definitions.
I tried out MealSquares when they were first available. Ate three of them before I ended up throwing the rest of the package in the trash. Really unappetizing and inedible, unless they've changed the recipe since then.
Mealsquares is probably healthier, but it's also much more expensive at $20 for 2,000 calories, vs $9 for Soylent. They're priced like energy bars (Clif bars, probars etc.).
I've recently become a Soylent convert. I originally got it just as a quick breakfast replacement. It's not life changing, but here's what I think of it and why I use it:
- It's quick and cheap. About $3 a meal, and I prepare a whole pouch at a time (just make sure to drink it all within 48 hours). Meal prep and clean-up time amortized across 3 meals is something like 20 seconds per meal. Even microwaves taquitos aren't that fast.
- It's almost guaranteed to be better for me than anything else that's quick and cheap. I personally think it's probably about as good as food science can get in terms of providing complete nutrition. There may some kind of micro-nutrients or some such that it may not be the best for. But considering the garbage I would normally eat on the run, I'm pretty sure I'm coming out on the positive side of things.
- I stay satiated on a solo cup full of it for about 2-3 hours longer than I do even with a gut splitting meal. I sometimes skip lunch entirely.
- When I get around to eating a regular meal, but appetite is about 50% of what it is normally. This is an amazing side-effect that's zero effort on my part.
- I can mix it with other ingredients/foods have it as part of a meal or an entire meal.
- my blood sugar feels more evened out during the day, so I don't go through sugar highs and sleepy lows as much
Downsides:
- a fully prepared container goes bad super fast, even in the fridge. I chalk this up to being full of nutrients, it's kind of like the opposite of McDonald's French Fries -- which will stay in good shape for months, even away from refrigeration.
- if I go above 50% Soylent for my meals, I get ultra-intense dreams -- often about eating meat. They aren't nightmares, but they're unpleasant.
- the satiation can sometimes feel a little like bloating
I'm considering also switching most of my lunches to it, but I also enjoy regular foodstuffs so much, and I actually do like the mid-day downtime during lunch.
I think they mean "billion", not "trillion", two words that are sadly very close together. A typical person might consume 60,000 calories a month, so a trillion calories a month is the equivalent of 17,000,000 people consuming nothing but Soylent. Soylent's not that popular.
OK, so that's about 17,000 users, or maybe twice that many orders if the typical order is the 2-week size. That's about 1000 transactions a day, or about 2 transactions a minute.
That transaction volume could be handled on a shared server with CGI programs. Why do they need so much computer infrastructure?
This is very interesting and strange to me. Cooking and eating tasty and new food in the company of other people is a major source of enjoyment in my life. I understand that most people may not enjoy cooking, but surely most people enjoy eating tasty food. Why would you give that up for Soylent?
I tried Soylent 1.4 for four days (one meal per day - eased into it). I had incredibly bad headaches. I felt weird, like my vision was impacted. It felt like I was getting a fever, even, although I wasn't. I've never had a "food" have such an immediate, negative impact on me. And it tasted pretty bad. Even if they describe it as "neutral," or like pancake batter, that's not exactly a good experience.
Unfortunately, I couldn't get myself to continue eating it. I would give 1.5 a shot, but only if they had a 1 or 3 pouch demo for cheaper. Not investing another $85.
For Europeans wanting to try it, check out Joylent[1] as well, a Soylent fork based in Netherlands. They do a few different tastes too (vanilla, strawberry, banana, chocolate and soon mango).
Why is a CTO only in charge of engineers who work on software? I would assume that the people doing anything molecular are also engineers. Sorry if this sounds strange but I hate it when talking to software folks I somehow have to remind them that before computers existed there were these other, strange professions also called engineers.
[+] [-] cblock811|10 years ago|reply
Breakfast: Oatmeal, honey, cinnamon $0.20
Lunch: Large Salad(spinach, carrot, tomato, cucumber, mushroom, bell pepper, sometimes almonds) $2.50
Dinner: Steamed Veggies and Seared Tilapia (kale, carrot, tomato, capers, tilapia) $3.50
If people just budged properly they would be fine. That being said, I'm curious to try soylent and have purchased a week supply of it. Could be fun to play with.
[+] [-] hvs|10 years ago|reply
I will say that you seem to have a surprising low daily caloric intake, though. I have a high metabolism, but sit in front of computer all day and I still need 2500 calories/day to maintain my weight.
[+] [-] kentt|10 years ago|reply
It makes my life simpler and more enjoyable and that's worth the price to me.
[+] [-] detrino|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] Nadya|10 years ago|reply
For example, I cannot stomach green beans. Attempting to chew them results in vomiting within my mouth. The smell of them alone is repulsive to me.
If I can have a bland solution to eating healthy - that's a win for me. The only thing preventing me from trying Soylent is the price of buying enough for 2 people, since all of my current meals are shared. Having to buy normal groceries and Soylent would nearly double my monthly cost for foodstuffs.
I'd have a healthier, cheaper diet if I only had to buy food for myself.
E:
Not to mention every "cheap alternative healthy food" to Soylent I see mentioned only targets a small section of nutrients and vitamins and often ignores proteins altogether. They aren't well rounded - even if they're healthier/cheaper than McDonalds. Soylent strikes the "well rounded" healthy food. Without the hassle of having to buy groceries or prepare the food.
[+] [-] Numberwang|10 years ago|reply
Add more almonds.
[+] [-] Shivetya|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] seanflyon|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] tetraodonpuffer|10 years ago|reply
The advantage of things like Soylent is that the price is the same no matter where you live, whether you are in a small town with great produce where it's cheap or whether you live in an expensive downtown with limited access.
[+] [-] PopeOfNope|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] pdeuchler|10 years ago|reply
Not saying that makes it impractical to cook your own food, but we can't act like the only cost in making dinner is the raw materials.
As an aside, it's pretty difficult to maintain those price levels if you'd like to eat more than oatmeal, spinach salad, and tilapia every day.
[+] [-] atacrawl|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] fernly|10 years ago|reply
I would suppose (based on doing 50% Soylent for a few months) that for an all-Soylent diet, planning and shopping time goes to zero, "cooking" time to 5 min/day (to shake up one bag in the pitcher), cleanup to near-zero (put glass in the sink). Very possibly the reduction in time, valued in dollars, makes Soylent cheaper.
[+] [-] tedks|10 years ago|reply
Further, Soylent is about $9/day, and your food system is only a bit less expensive at $6.20/day. In contrast, I've lived for months off of DIY soylents that were $3.50/day.
[+] [-] kamaal|10 years ago|reply
This is largely true in poor and developing countries. The food prices go up when fuel prices go up. I don't see this change even in the case of Soylent.
[+] [-] branchless|10 years ago|reply
It's like a forum of aliens. I have nothing in common with them. It really made me feel repelled by some of the replies.
To be human is to want to eat fine food and to play.
To be inhuman is to want to consume calories so you can work longer. Yuk and yuk.
[+] [-] namlem|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] elwell|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] s73v3r|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] curiously|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] unknown|10 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] jimrandomh|10 years ago|reply
How much sodium to eat is very controversial, but if you're eating sodium, you should know that they took the extreme low-sodium position. The current version contains 1640mg of sodium per pouch, which is about half the typical intake. This creates a risk of deficiency, especially when exercising or in hot weather. The symptoms of sodium deficiency are headaches and lethargy; the test for whether those symptoms are caused by sodium deficiency is to eat salt (~1g mixed with food or water) and see if they go away quickly.
[+] [-] jamii|10 years ago|reply
> First, there's nothing especially risky or unusual in MealSquares; they're made from a broad variety of ordinary, healthy whole-food ingredients like milk, rice bran, dates, etc. See our nutrition page for the full list. And unlike many commercial baked goods, MealSquares are free of artificial preservatives and flavoring agents.
They also don't require mixing so they work much better as a camping/climbing food.
[+] [-] JohnTHaller|10 years ago|reply
Soylent is simple to make, simple to drink, and has a pretty neutral flavor. They tweak it at each new version so the issues with the early versions have been eliminated. Some people won't like that approach and will prefer a "whole food" thing instead, which is just fine.
[+] [-] fweespeech|10 years ago|reply
2000 calories of it is 130% of your daily saturated fat...and 126% of total fat.
Eh. Soylent you could get away with eating it all day [theoretically]. MealSquares you need to supplement with other foods due to the fact content or you'll end up screwing your health with that much saturated fat.
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/NutritionCenter...
Additionally:
> The American Heart Association recommends aiming for a dietary pattern that achieves 5% to 6% of calories from saturated fat. That means, for example, if you need about 2,000 calories a day, no more than 120 of them should come from saturated fats. That’s about 13 grams of saturated fats a day.
Its 6g per square, so you really shouldn't eat more than 2 and get the rest from other sources. At which point, its a minority of the calories you consume.
[+] [-] Retric|10 years ago|reply
Also xylitol, lactase, potassium citrate, rice bran, and vegetable glycerin are not really 'whole foods' by most definitions.
[+] [-] mrbill|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nether|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] emmab|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bane|10 years ago|reply
- It's quick and cheap. About $3 a meal, and I prepare a whole pouch at a time (just make sure to drink it all within 48 hours). Meal prep and clean-up time amortized across 3 meals is something like 20 seconds per meal. Even microwaves taquitos aren't that fast.
- It's almost guaranteed to be better for me than anything else that's quick and cheap. I personally think it's probably about as good as food science can get in terms of providing complete nutrition. There may some kind of micro-nutrients or some such that it may not be the best for. But considering the garbage I would normally eat on the run, I'm pretty sure I'm coming out on the positive side of things.
- I stay satiated on a solo cup full of it for about 2-3 hours longer than I do even with a gut splitting meal. I sometimes skip lunch entirely.
- When I get around to eating a regular meal, but appetite is about 50% of what it is normally. This is an amazing side-effect that's zero effort on my part.
- I can mix it with other ingredients/foods have it as part of a meal or an entire meal.
- my blood sugar feels more evened out during the day, so I don't go through sugar highs and sleepy lows as much
Downsides:
- a fully prepared container goes bad super fast, even in the fridge. I chalk this up to being full of nutrients, it's kind of like the opposite of McDonald's French Fries -- which will stay in good shape for months, even away from refrigeration.
- if I go above 50% Soylent for my meals, I get ultra-intense dreams -- often about eating meat. They aren't nightmares, but they're unpleasant.
- the satiation can sometimes feel a little like bloating
I'm considering also switching most of my lunches to it, but I also enjoy regular foodstuffs so much, and I actually do like the mid-day downtime during lunch.
[+] [-] apsec112|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bryanlarsen|10 years ago|reply
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calorie
[+] [-] Animats|10 years ago|reply
That transaction volume could be handled on a shared server with CGI programs. Why do they need so much computer infrastructure?
[+] [-] jules|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] damoncali|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jules|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] CyberDildonics|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thisone|10 years ago|reply
Makes me wonder how many stadium pals are owned by the same type of people.
[+] [-] mrcwinn|10 years ago|reply
Unfortunately, I couldn't get myself to continue eating it. I would give 1.5 a shot, but only if they had a 1 or 3 pouch demo for cheaper. Not investing another $85.
[+] [-] MrUnderhill|10 years ago|reply
[1] https://joylent.eu
[+] [-] matthewowen|10 years ago|reply
How... underwhelming.
[+] [-] ldayley|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vermontdevil|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] kainolophobia|10 years ago|reply
Engineering is not purely technical prowess, it's the balance of technology, economy, organization and other variables.
I see no mention of cost in this article; is this infrastructure friendly to the future of the business?
[+] [-] unknown|10 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] unknown|10 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] sjg007|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] wheaties|10 years ago|reply
[+] [-] driverdan|10 years ago|reply
8oz skim milk
1/2 cup oats
25g milk protein isolate
1 banana
1 tbsp natural peanut butter (or almond butter)
Dash of good cinnamon
Multivitamin
Takes only a few minutes to make, tastes better than Soylent and is cheaper.
[+] [-] mdekkers|10 years ago|reply