25 Jan, 2011
Easy and Stylish ThermaPod a Great Waste Free Lunch Box!
Posted by: Meg In: Lunchbox Products
One of my readers recommended their favorite new lunchbox: ThermaPod. Luckily, ThermaPod was willing to send me a sample and after using it for a couple of months I am happy to recommend it as a great bento-style lunchbox! ThermaPod is a Canadian based company whose goal was to create a lunchbox that would: reduce waste and improve the environment, improve nutrition and healthy eating, be convenient to use, save time and money, be a quality product, be “cool” in its design and look. On all accounts it has met these goals and allows users to conveniently pack lunches in a cleverly designed, waste-free lunch box!
ThermaPod is a laptop-style lunchbox with 2 inner compartments–one large and one medium. The containers are quite deep, so the larger, sandwich sized compartment can hold a sandwich plus a wrapped cookie or crackers (for reusable sandwich/snack bags check out happy-sacks or other reusable baggies). On the lower side of the ThermaPod lunch container a separate door opens that hides utensils including a plastic fork, spoon and even chopsticks. Very cool! A warning, however: when I was rinsing out my ThermaPod I didn’t realize that the silverware compartment had come open. Two of the plastic pieces fell into the garbage disposal and I accidentally broke them when I turned on the disp
osal. OOPS! So… be careful to keep track of your utensils better 
The ThermaPod inner food container tray pops out of the lunchbox to fit in the dishwasher… a requirement for a good lunchbox, in my opinion! Other features that make this lunchbox a winner include it is BPA free, easy to pack, and comes in six fun lunchbox colors. Additionally, ThermaPod is manufactured entirely in North America, making it one of the most truly environmentally focused lunchbox products available–no product shipping from the other side of the world with these!
The latch system to open/close the lunchbox is simple, though I think too tricky for a preschooler to open independently. For this reason I think ThermaPod is best for kids around 6 and up… great for grownups, too, though!
The overall size is similar to that of Laptop Lunches, so it can fit in many standard size lunch bags or lunch carriers. However, ThermaPod also creates a custom neoprene Thermabag for $16.95. You can buy the entire ThermaPod lunch kit for $39.95 that includes ThermaPod, neoprene lunch bag, and a reusable stainless steel bottle. The ThermaPod lunch container alone can be purchased for $24.95. As with other waste-free lunchboxes, initial investments may seem high compared to disposable options, but the long term benefit on your wallet and environment is immense. Now is the time to turn lunch packing easy & green!
