It’s so tempting to want to send unhealthy food– cookies, candy, you name it. (Guilty as charged!) When I was sending care packages to John, he also wanted healthier foods because the healthy foods that were available weren’t rotated often and he missed the variety. (Check out the Baby We Were Born to Run, Souper Bowl, F-Words, and Honey healthy care packages for inspiration for themes!)
I’ve heard the same thing from many of you, so I put together a list of care package-proof foods that are healthy and should hold up being sent through the mail with the right packaging and precautions.
For this list, I’ve linked to some of the harder-to-find foods and recipes that really work and can be found on my blog.
- peanut butter
- single-serving nut butters
- KIND bars
- Luna bars
- Clif bars
- Larabars
- power bars
- dried fruit
- dried veggies
- Gra-yes-la Bars
- Cocoa Roasted Walnuts
- Mio drink enhancers
- cracker packs
- canned fruit
- canned veggies
- single-serving cups of fruit
- single-serving cups of veggies
- Horizon Organic Milk
- flax seeds
- chia seds
- Quinoa Breakfast Cookies
- whole wheat cereals
- instant oatmeal
- protein powder
- Pumpkin Pie Nut Mix
- canned, cooked chicken breast
- single-serving tuna packets (Here’s how to send free StarKist Tuna!)
- canned tuna
- popcorn
- salsa
- air-popped chips
- olives
- baked tortilla chips
- Annie’s All Natural Microwavable Mac and Cheese
- tomato-based soups
- herbal teas
- applesauce packets
- dark chocolate
- muesli
- pretzels
- honey
- spices
- baked naan chips
- Lemon Pepper Roasted Walnuts
- coffee
- Low-Cal Lemon Cornbread Cookies
- baked edamame
- apple chips
- graham crackers
- Terra Mediterranean Chips
- rice cakes
- multigrain crackers
- fruit leather
- all-natural jerky
- Mediterranean Snacks Baked Roasted Red Pepper Lentil Chips
- low-fat fig newtons
- Triscuits
- 100% fruit juice snacks
- whole grain mustard
- No-Bake Pecan & Oat Bars
- Skinny Cow chocolates
- Bare Naked cookies
- lentil chips
- sunflower seeds
- pumpkin seeds
- single-serving fruit juices
- unsweetened cocoa
- Low-Cal Chocolate Cherry Cookies
- Gatorade drink enhancers
- Wheat-Thin Wanna-Be Crackers
- Healthy Choice Lunch Express meals
- Cinnamon Sea Salt Roasted Walnuts
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Such a good list… I am always blanking when it comes to sending things for Bear!
Thanks. I am going to show this to the hubs before we send ours out. He gives his final seal of approval on care packages since he used to receive them! AWESOME list!
Any tips for mailing chocolate? I’m sending my first care package and concerned about sending clif bars that have chocolate due to the extreme heat in summer. Thanks!
If there’s not too much chocolate in them, you should be good. Usually small bits of chocolate will just melt and resolidify. I’d avoid sending things that are made of a lot of chocolate. Also, since they’re Clif Bars, are you sure it’s actual chocolate? It might be a derivative that might have a much higher melting point.
Awesome! Very helpful care package list. Thank you so much for sharing these ideas!
Theses are a great lists. Thanks.
Great list. Thank you for posting this. Now I have an idea what to mix and match food for the kids.
Thanks for these wonderful tips. These is helpful ndeed.
Hi there! I discovered from your website that Starkist would send tuna to troops deployed overseas. I contacted them and within 2 weeks, my husband received his onbard his ship! Thank you so much for sharing. He’s trying to eat healthier and doing so isn’t not terribly easy onboard. I thought this might make for an easy quick snack or addition to salad or bread.
Thank you. Our son just joined the Air Force as is finally at tech school. We can send care packages, but wanted to avoid junk foods and sugary snacks. This list is fatalistic and now I have lots of ideas that he can share with his buddies.