Meet the Klean Kanteen Food Box
The Klean Kanteen Food Box is Klean Kanteen's first step in to the stainless steel lunch box arena. For those who have followed our history, one of the first brands we had in store in our water bottle category was Klean Kanteen. At the time, we were importing them in small batches directly from the USA where their head office is based. It was 2009 and Klean Kanteen had been on the market only since 2004. They had a 5 year jump on us here at Shop Naturally. They made the first stainless steel water bottle for commercial use on the planet and the original shape is still used and copied by many. Over the years, as they developed their range, slowly introducing new lids, new design, new products (including stainless steel straws with silicone safety tips), one thing we saw them be the absolute best as was designing lids that out performed the rest of the market. Their sports lids on their water bottles always had the best flow, and they have taken their same approach to creating amazing lids in to the creation of the Klean Kanteen Food Box.
Creating a leakproof stainless steel lunch box is not an easy thing to do. We have watched many brands try and fail, not quite getting the closure of the lid right, or the silicone seal to stay in place in the lid. They have taken a different approach with their Klean Kanteen Food box. Instead of placing a thin and removable silicone seal in a groove in the lid (which can be prone to falling out or growing mould underneath it), they have created a predominantly stainless steel lid with silicone going all the way around the edge. This silicone is a permanent part of the lid and does not need to be removed for cleaning. You will notice one corner has more silicone on it (see above). While their official website talks about this being there to vent steam of of the box, since it's not insulated, we're not quite sure this is the main function of this section. We have a better idea for it. Little hands in particular, can find it hard to get lids off things. So can older people with either strength issues or arthritis. Many people with disabilities also have issues with handling a vast array of daily objects that we take for granted. This extra piece of silicone in the lid of the Klean Kanteen Food Box (top right hand corner of the image above), makes it easier to get the first corner of the lid off, and therefore, the whole lid comes off easier (see image below).
The other issue many brands face with stainless steel lunch boxes in general is getting the lids to stay in place. The two larger sizes in the Klean Kanteen Food Box range have a silicone tab on two of the 4 sides of the lunch box and a small piece of stainless steel that sticks out for the loop to catch on to. Once the lid is securely in place, this holds it put and as long as the silicone is pressed down firmly around all edges, and it's not left to roll around a bag loosely for something to catch on that silicone corner, the Food Box is leakproof.
The Klean Kanteen Food Box range is plastic free, made of only 304 grade stainless steel and silicone. The packaging of the product is also plastic free. The 'plastic bags' that the boxes come in are a biodegradable plant based bag and can go in to your compost or your garden. The set comes in a cardboard box that can be recycled. The Klean Kanteen Food Box is available in 3 sizes. 2 of them can be purchased on their own, the third is only available in the set.
The Lunch Size Food Box from Klean Kanteen is 591ml in capacity. Is it sized for sandwiches, is square and measures 14.6cm square and 5cm tall. On the product page (click on the image above to jump straight to it), you'll see it with a variety of other food in it. It's great for an average sized meal. The Lunch Size can be purchased on its own or as a part of the Food Box Set.
The Meal Size Food Box from Klean Kanteen is almost double the size of the lunch box at 1005ml. Whether it's a larger meal for one or sharing something, you'll get a lot more food inside the Meal Size. This is the largest of the 3 boxes and can be purchased on its own or as a part of the set.
The Food Box Set from Klean Kanteen contains both boxes mentioned above and also a smaller snack box. The full volumes of these boxes are 1005ml (bottom layer), 591ml (top left) and 207ml (top right). They're big enough to pack a full meal and snacks for the day in a decent sized lunch bag and they stack neatly together for storage. The snack box is not available to purchase on its own and does not have the tabs to hold the lid in place. It can only be purchased as a part of this set. Together, they can replace a stainless steel bento box that's 1.8 litres in capacity with the flexibility of only carrying the pieces you want on the days you want to, rather than carrying the whole thing around all the time.
UPDATE: Oct 2023. The Klean Kanteen Food Box range is only while stocks last. It is being phased out and replaced with something else.
