Shawn Talbot, the founder of Nourished Bermuda, is on a mission to improve eating habits.

He started Nourished Bermuda, which does plant-based meal prep, four years ago, offering a variety of vegan meals.

He said: “It came from my personal-training background. I used to make meals and give recipes to my clients. We got to the point where I was cooking for customers, breaking down the macros for them, making sure they were getting enough protein and carbs. Then we developed a business through that and hired some amazing chefs who cook really good food.”

The meals offered through Nourished Bermuda are prepared locally. “We rent a commercial kitchen where we make all the food. It’s located at 2 North Shore Road, Smith’s Parish,” Mr Talbot said.

The company’s chefs include Efren Caldoza and Rene Maypa, who prepare meals that are quick and healthy options.

“We are just trying to save you time and give you healthier options,” Mr Talbot said. “Keep you gassed up for the day. We are very in tune with the ingredients we use to give you complex carbohydrates and really balance out your food intake, because that is pretty important,”

Meal kit delivery services were made even more popular here and abroad during the lockdowns of the pandemic.

The market in Canada has revenue projections for this year of US$1.66 billion, and in the United States of more than $10 billion.

In Bermuda, Nourished continues to appeal to a wide client list.

“Our demographic is very diversified, including ages from 18 to 75. There is no certain-type customer. Everyone is trying to get on board with something quicker and healthier to eat,” Mr Talbot said. “We are probably one of the top food companies in Bermuda.”

Central to its success, Nourished Bermuda’s packaged food is ready to eat in a few minutes and can cater to those with dietary restrictions.

“We try our best to customise our meals. Obviously, they come in bulk once we prepare them but if someone has dietary restrictions we can refer them to a different meal. Our options are all low-sodium and high-protein,” Mr Talbot said.

On Nourished Bermuda’s website, people can purchase meals in a five or ten-pack quantity, with prices ranging from $69.75 to $139.50. The meals are under 480 calories, can be heated in four or five minutes and can be stored in the refrigerator for three days.

Under a branch of Nourished Bermuda, Mr Talbot said, is the more recently developed Eat Clean Bermuda, which offers meat-based packaged meals.

“We are focusing on building a social-media page similar to the one for Nourished. There might be different branches, but always under the Nourished brand.

“Eat Clean Bermuda is $17.50 online and $18.50 in store because we do use premium meats like lamb, salmon and we try to diversify as best we can.”

Happy with the current business model, Mr Talbot said the meals prep and pick-up service works well for him and is a hit with customers, who can also order through Pronto.