Review - Can Soylent Replace Food? #SoylentPioneer

Jason from the Metropolitant team has gone where few have dared to venture in Singapore. As intrepid as the mountaineers conquering Everest or the lungless free divers reaching the deepest depths of the oceans, He has chosen to take the ultimate step to adventurous glory. I have gone food free in Singapore. Yes, you read it right. Food Free. No, I haven’t stopped eating. But I have altered my diet to subsist on a revolutionary new product that can seemingly solve world hunger.

*Note: Soylent v1.4 has utilized a blend of powdered oils as a source of necessary fats, rather than the bottled oil blend used in v1-v1.3.

Soylentís nutritional makeup is comprehensive. It includes protein, carbohydrates, fats, fiber, and vitamins and minerals such as potassium, iron, and calcium. It contains all of the elements of a healthy diet, with limited contribution from less desirable components such as sugars, saturated fats, or cholesterol. The Soylent recipe is based on the recommendations of the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and is approved as a food by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The list of ingredients includes oat flour, rice protein, omega 3 fatty acids. Our custom microvitamin blend provides essential nutrients like vitamin D and foliate, and electrolytes such as potassium.
When I was first introduced by a friend to this, I was suspiciously skeptical about its benefits. Adding to the skepticism, Soylent does not ship internationally as yet so only through Vpost can you get it and it came in a huge almost 20kg box package that cost me $550. Granted, it is a month’s supply of food but I started to doubt myself and wondering if it was a fad.

Working in the CBD, food choices is painfully numerous. I spend time thinking about what to eat and whether I should dine in comfort at a restaurant or takeaway to eat my meal in the office. Other than time, cost is another issue. Spending an average of $10 a work day is not unheard of. Of course you can eat frugally and occasionally spoil yourself with restaurant meal upwards of $20. A day of Soylent (w/o shipping) costs about $12 – $14 depending on whether you buy it once to try or a recurring delivery method. $12 – $14 is for the whole day! Breakfast, Brunch, Lunch, Tea break, Dinner, Supper and whatever other meal you add, that’s all in one daily packet. You have prepared multiple meals in minutes the night before and there’s no longer a need to shop for individual or plan ahead for meals. A daily intake of 2000 calorie formula developed with the help of a nutritional advisor approved by the US FDA as food to get all the essential nutrients required to fuel the human body.

My experiment will last a month for 5 out of 7 days a week. I will not give up on conventional food. Eating is both for nutrition and a social activity. Soylent should not stop you from being human, being social. I have high hopes that Soylent will help me save time, money and keep me nutritionally healthy together with regular exercise.