A baby feeder is used to introduce solid food to babies without worrying about the risk of choking.

A food feeder looks pretty similar to the shape of a baby pacifier but much bigger than that.

The food feeder comes with either a mesh or silicone pocket where you fill your solid food in.

Every food feeder comes with a cover that closes at the bottom to hold the food inside the pocket.

The food feeders also feature an easy to grip handle for babies to hold and gnaw the food. Some food feeders have a cover that goes over the pocket for hygiene.

How Do Baby Feeders Work?

Food feeders serve a pretty simple purpose and are not complicated to use.

  • Choose some age-appropriate food you want to feed your baby
  • Clean the baby feeder
  • Open the lid and put the solid food inside the mesh or silicone pocket
  • Close the lid, remove the cover (if your feeder has one)
  • Hand it over to the baby and watch them make funny faces while trying new foods.
  • Once they are done, dump the excess food, wash, dry and repeat.

Sounds simple, right? 

Are Food Feeders Good For Babies?

There are a million baby gadgets in the market today, and you are probably wondering if you need one more. Hear me out.

I swear the baby feeders are AWESOME! For the price they cost, they do a fantastic job, and babies enjoy them.

Here are 5 reasons why you need a baby feeder.

1. Teething:

If you have a teething baby, then you might already know that teething babies love to bite on everything. Baby feeders, especially when served with cold food, can be soothing to aching gums and relieve their teething pain.

If your baby has not yet started solids, then you can fill the feeder with frozen breast milk or formula ice cubes. 

2. Prevents Choking:

One of the scariest things that I faced while introducing solid food to my babies was when they started to gag or appeared to choke.

By using food feeders, you are not exposing your infant to big portions of food particles, which creates a safe feeding environment for them to try new food.

3. Develop Motor skills:

Food feeders encourage babies to practice self-feeding. It develops the hand-eye coordination that is needed to master spoon or finger feeding.

4. Keep Them Busy:

This has to be my favourite reason!

When I ran out of ways to keep them busy, I would just put some frozen fruit in the baby feeder and hand it over to them.

They happily enjoy their snack while I get some time to finish my work.

5. Sensory Experience:

Food feeders also provide a good sensory experience which babies love. It also instils a positive attitude towards trying new food.

Silicone or Mesh? Which one to Choose?

I am 100% team silicone, and I would highly be using silicone feeders because they are easy to clean and a plastic-free option to use.

Mesh feeders are a pain to clean, food gets stuck in between the mesh, and it is challenging to get them out.

I tried mesh feeders before; I was naive enough to try them with bananas. I let them sit on the counter before washing them.

Let’s say that I had to throw the mesh feeder away; I went and bought a silicone feeder and never looked back again.

If you still want to try mesh feeder, then munchkin ones are hands down the best.

 

Best Silicone Baby Feeders:

1.Boon:

Boon is one of my favourite brands. They really care about their customers and only use safe materials to make their products.

Their silicone feeder is particularly my dearest. The feeder itself is made of soft, food-grade silicone with small holes through which your baby can taste the food.

It comes with a firm handle for babies to grab and enjoy their treat.

Boon feeder was perfect when we started with solids and was great relief during the teething phase.

Some parents complain that they find it small, I did not find it so and you can always refill and offer seconds if they want more.

I did find that my kids had a hard time getting any solid food like solid apples out of the boon feeder, so I always offerred food that were soft and juicy like berries.

2.Kids Me Food Feeder:

Kids me feeder comes very close to Boon feeder for me. For serving at home, I usually alternated between both Boon and Kidsme.

When I am out and about, Kidsme was the winner for various reasons.

1. Boon does not come with a cover, but Kids me does. You can easily keep the feeder closed, hygienic using the cap.

2. Kidsme feeder also comes with a hole between the handles that attach to clips or holders to prevent dropping on the floor.

3. Kidsme comes in two different sizes, medium and large; you can use the appropriate size based on your baby’s age.

4. My babies seem to love the double handle, and they found it easier to grab them with both the hands.

The sac itself is made from food-grade silicone and FDA certified. You can also buy replaceable silicone sacs to use instead of buying the whole feeder if you want.

The textured silicone sac is also great for teething babies. Seriously, it is a lifesaver when you offer chilled or frozen foods in this feeder.

Your babies will thank you and may even reward you with 30 minutes of fuss-free time. 

3. Ashtonbee  Baby Feeder:

AshtonBee Feeder looks pretty similar to Kidsme. AShtonBee also comes with a cap to cover the silicone sac and a safety lock that ‘clicks.’

Ashtonbee is marketed as a silicone feeder and pacifier because it clams your child down during teething pain.

The silicone sac itself is food-grade silicone that is free of BPA, Lead, Petroleum, Phthalates, so it is safe for your baby to nipple.

4.Nature Bond Fruit Feeder:

 

If you dislike the idea of buying different size feeders as your baby grows and wondering if there is a product that grows with your baby, then Nature Bond food feeder is where it is.

You get two pack baby feeders, and it comes with 3 different pair of sizes-small, medium and large.

The sac is made of food-grade silicone that is BPA Free, Latex Free, Phthalates Free, and Lead-Free.

Nature bond feeders come in fun colors (think candy!) that your kids will love.

5. Moss and Fawn Forage Feeder:

Best Silicone Feeders For Babies 2019

 

We at ANM, love supporting mom businesses and that’s why this brand is special to me. Sofia, the owner of Moss and Fawn, sent me her forage feeder to try and I loved it.

Please note that I only received the product for free; I was not compensated to write this post; all opinions are my honest views.

The product comes with a feeder and three silicone sacs that grow with your baby.

The forage feeder comes neatly packed in a cloth bag and also contains a booklet that guides on how to use the feeder and offers suggestions on best foods to try.

I love the company how this brand believes in sustainability and makes a conscious choice at every step of making the product.

Their packaging is recyclable, the booklet is printed in a wind-powered facility, and printed with vegetable ink on recycled paper.

They also use 100% cotton bags to pack their feeder and 100% natural wood strands as filling that are easily compostable.

The forage feeder is made of safe, non-toxic food-grade silicone, tested free of BPA, PVC, Phthalates, and Lead and is also FDA and CPSIA compliant.

Yay! for this company for looking out for your baby and the environment.

Let’s Wrap Up:

Silicone feeders are safer and easier than using mesh baby feeders, in my opinion. They are perfect to introduce solid foods to your baby and works wonders during teething.

Not all silicone feeders are made the same, though. It is important to look for one that is made with food grade silicone without any fillers.

Also, I highly recommend using a one that is free of unwanted chemicals like BPA, phthalates, lead and pvc.

Considering all the above points,

Here is my list of Best Silicone feeders to Buy (2019):

  1. Boon Silicone Feeder
  2. Kids Me Food Feeder
  3. AshtonBee Feeder
  4. NatureBond Food Feeder/ Pacifier
  5. Moss and Fawn Forage Feeder.

Did you use any food feeder? Which one did you use and how did you like it?

Silicone Baby feeder with strawberries

 

 

 

 

Sharing is caring!