Wildtree

[Anonymous]

I know how DCUM feels about sell-to-your-friends parties. That being said, a friend has just become a rep for Wildtree, which is apparently a pretty natural food workshop kind of company. I'm intrigued by the prepare and freeze concept. Any experience or reviews? I googled review and didn't immediately find anything negative.

If I can support her, I'd like to. But only if it's food that I would actually serve my family.

[Anonymous]

I downloaded their catalog -- looks like it's mainly herb blends, dry mixes and $9.50 teriyaki sauce. Not exactly "effortless" cooking.

[Anonymous]

I'm reviving this old thread because I can't believe I got suckered into spending $90 on flipping spices and I want to warn the world!

I had heard of wildtree before, but never paid it much attention. A friend was invited to a freezer meal party, and asked me to tag along. I chose the crock pot freezer meal kit, willingly handed over the credit card for the ~$90 fee and a couple days before the party was emailed the shopping list which consisted of:
lots of freezer bags
several pounds of meat - mostly chicken
several canned tomato products
a few cans of different type beans
fresh veggies like carrots, onion, celery and peppers

I already had the freezer bags, most of the fresh veggies and canned items, so I ended up spending about $130 more on the meat, dry tapioca, green chilies and peppers. I shopped quick and perhaps could have gotten it cheaper if I'd shopped around, but I was in a hurry.

So, this "kit" is designed to make 20 full size meals, and the extra shopping list was to be used for 10 of those, saving the other 1/2 of the kit for future use. Since we're just 2 1/2 eaters here, I decided to split my 10 into 20 meals. So for 20 meals, I've now invested about $175. That doesn't sound bad at all, does it - less than $10 per meal for 2-3 people? That sounds fairly cheap actually. But, about 1/4 of the price was for the wildtree products - which again, WERE JUST SPICES!

My kit came with jars (~4 oz each) of:
garlic seasoning blend
fajita seasoning
spaghetti sauce blend
java rub
onion blend
chicken bouillon soup base
13 oz bottle of roasted garlic grapeseed oil

And yes, this is exactly what it sounds like - not some wonderfully magical concoction. They are plain old seasoning blends you'd find in the spice aisle of any grocery store. at about a 500% markup! They did smell great. Not any better than Mckormick though.

To top it off, our "party" was cancelled due to weather issues, so I was stuck chopping all the veggies, prepping the meats and making these bags by myself, without the companionship of friends, drinking and snacking. I was almost physically sick to my stomach when my kit was dropped off and I found literally <$20 worth of spice rubs/blends inside. We haven't eaten any meals yet - so maybe I'm wrong - maybe these blends have transformational powers to make my roast extra special. Oh, I forgot to add, in addition to the kit, and the shopping list, there are additional add-ons for each meal which are needed the day of cooking/serving. A pound of potatoes for the roast, pasta, mushrooms, white wine, parmesan and cream for the chicken/tomato garlic cream sauce, cilantro, lime, avocado and tortillas for the chicken posole, etc. :/

So, if you've made it this far, I'm hoping you have a vested interest in wildtree and can please tell me what I'm missing. On what planet is wildtree worth it's price? Flipping through the catalog, I see 12 oz of wing sauce for $11, 5 oz of strawberry balsamic vinegar for $10, 1.4 oz guacamole seasoning for $7. Almost $30 for items that should total no more than $10 - even if you're buying the best, most pure and healthy brands!

Shame on me for falling for this scam, but hopefully someone can either enlighten me, or I can keep others from falling prey. Either case would cheer me up immensely.

[Anonymous]

Any other thoughts on whether Wildtree workshops are worth it? I know it's a direct sales gig, but as DC is preparing to start K and I'm going back to work full-time there is something appealing about spending a few hours socializing and ending up with a few week's worth of healthy meals in the freezer.

I occasionally see them advertised on friends' FB pages or our local parenting listserve but I've never tried it out.

[Anonymous]

I'm a Wildtree rep. I picked it up earlier this year but haven't really put much work in to it so I'm not doing much other than breaking even. I really do think the workshops are worth it. The Wildtree product bundle might seem a little pricey, but they are high quality items. The rep puts a lot of work in to prepping for the workshop; workstation setup, workstation recipes, recipe labels for the bags and making sure that everything is organized and runs smoothly. I went to another freezer meal workshop last year that took FOUR hours. It was horribly disorganized and confusing. At the end of that time, I only came home with 6 (I split to 12) meals. I could have done that at home in the same amount of time. And the spices (Pampered Chef) that I came away with were only eh. With Wildtree, you come home with 10, or 20 if you're a small family, meals. There is pre-workshop prep on your end, sorting/chopping the proteins, prepping the veg, labeling the bags, etc. but if you do it yourself, you still need to put this work in to it. At least with a workshop, you do it all at once and you're done. On Sunday night, pull a few meals out of the freezer and let them thaw over the course of the week. I go through every other month or so and make a workshop for myself and toss the meals in the freezer so they're ready to go. This isn't the complete meal, you usually need to throw in a starch, rice, quinoa, pasta. BUT, the hard work (planning and prep) are all done, so even if you need to toss some quinoa in a pot, it's a lot easier to know you have something for dinner than coming home at 5-6pm and scrambling to see what's in the fridge/pantry.


If you don't want to go to a workshop, although that's where all the fun and socializing is, Wildtree also has two other options; Simple Healthy Dinner (each meal under 600 calories) and a monthly menu planner bundle. Each comes with a grocery list (sorted by category) and recipe instructions. Simple Healthy Dinner has step by step photos with each recipe as well. The only downside I can think of with the workshops is the volume of ziploc bags that are used. I suggest double bagging because air is your enemy with freezer meals and you don't want freezer burn.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm reviving this old thread because I can't believe I got suckered into spending $90 on flipping spices and I want to warn the world!

I had heard of wildtree before, but never paid it much attention. A friend was invited to a freezer meal party, and asked me to tag along. I chose the crock pot freezer meal kit, willingly handed over the credit card for the ~$90 fee and a couple days before the party was emailed the shopping list which consisted of:
lots of freezer bags
several pounds of meat - mostly chicken
several canned tomato products
a few cans of different type beans
fresh veggies like carrots, onion, celery and peppers

I already had the freezer bags, most of the fresh veggies and canned items, so I ended up spending about $130 more on the meat, dry tapioca, green chilies and peppers. I shopped quick and perhaps could have gotten it cheaper if I'd shopped around, but I was in a hurry.

So, this "kit" is designed to make 20 full size meals, and the extra shopping list was to be used for 10 of those, saving the other 1/2 of the kit for future use. Since we're just 2 1/2 eaters here, I decided to split my 10 into 20 meals. So for 20 meals, I've now invested about $175. That doesn't sound bad at all, does it - less than $10 per meal for 2-3 people? That sounds fairly cheap actually. But, about 1/4 of the price was for the wildtree products - which again, WERE JUST SPICES!

My kit came with jars (~4 oz each) of:
garlic seasoning blend
fajita seasoning
spaghetti sauce blend
java rub
onion blend
chicken bouillon soup base
13 oz bottle of roasted garlic grapeseed oil

And yes, this is exactly what it sounds like - not some wonderfully magical concoction. They are plain old seasoning blends you'd find in the spice aisle of any grocery store. at about a 500% markup! They did smell great. Not any better than Mckormick though.

To top it off, our "party" was cancelled due to weather issues, so I was stuck chopping all the veggies, prepping the meats and making these bags by myself, without the companionship of friends, drinking and snacking. I was almost physically sick to my stomach when my kit was dropped off and I found literally <$20 worth of spice rubs/blends inside. We haven't eaten any meals yet - so maybe I'm wrong - maybe these blends have transformational powers to make my roast extra special. Oh, I forgot to add, in addition to the kit, and the shopping list, there are additional add-ons for each meal which are needed the day of cooking/serving. A pound of potatoes for the roast, pasta, mushrooms, white wine, parmesan and cream for the chicken/tomato garlic cream sauce, cilantro, lime, avocado and tortillas for the chicken posole, etc. :/

So, if you've made it this far, I'm hoping you have a vested interest in wildtree and can please tell me what I'm missing. On what planet is wildtree worth it's price? Flipping through the catalog, I see 12 oz of wing sauce for $11, 5 oz of strawberry balsamic vinegar for $10, 1.4 oz guacamole seasoning for $7. Almost $30 for items that should total no more than $10 - even if you're buying the best, most pure and healthy brands!

Shame on me for falling for this scam, but hopefully someone can either enlighten me, or I can keep others from falling prey. Either case would cheer me up immensely.

This exactly. And all the meals are bland because the mixes don't have salt in them. Totally not worth the money or effort. Just make your own spices. Blah.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm a Wildtree rep. I picked it up earlier this year but haven't really put much work in to it so I'm not doing much other than breaking even. I really do think the workshops are worth it. The Wildtree product bundle might seem a little pricey, but they are high quality items. The rep puts a lot of work in to prepping for the workshop; workstation setup, workstation recipes, recipe labels for the bags and making sure that everything is organized and runs smoothly. I went to another freezer meal workshop last year that took FOUR hours. It was horribly disorganized and confusing. At the end of that time, I only came home with 6 (I split to 12) meals. I could have done that at home in the same amount of time. And the spices (Pampered Chef) that I came away with were only eh. With Wildtree, you come home with 10, or 20 if you're a small family, meals. There is pre-workshop prep on your end, sorting/chopping the proteins, prepping the veg, labeling the bags, etc. but if you do it yourself, you still need to put this work in to it. At least with a workshop, you do it all at once and you're done. On Sunday night, pull a few meals out of the freezer and let them thaw over the course of the week. I go through every other month or so and make a workshop for myself and toss the meals in the freezer so they're ready to go. This isn't the complete meal, you usually need to throw in a starch, rice, quinoa, pasta. BUT, the hard work (planning and prep) are all done, so even if you need to toss some quinoa in a pot, it's a lot easier to know you have something for dinner than coming home at 5-6pm and scrambling to see what's in the fridge/pantry.


If you don't want to go to a workshop, although that's where all the fun and socializing is, Wildtree also has two other options; Simple Healthy Dinner (each meal under 600 calories) and a monthly menu planner bundle. Each comes with a grocery list (sorted by category) and recipe instructions. Simple Healthy Dinner has step by step photos with each recipe as well. The only downside I can think of with the workshops is the volume of ziploc bags that are used. I suggest double bagging because air is your enemy with freezer meals and you don't want freezer burn.

If you think this description makes your product appealing, you are so wrong.

[Anonymous]

Take thee to any of Penzey's local stores or their website. They have awesome, reasonably priced spices and seasonings and great variety.

[Anonymous]

If you google "meal planning," you will find many websites that explain this exact process (making a plethora of meals in advance and freezing them) for free. You buy everything, just like with Wildtree, but you don't spend $8 on a spice packet.

[Anonymous]

Wild tree is a SCAM!! 100% misleading. I thought these meals were supposed to be around $3 a meal, and cheaper because I am a vegetarian! Not in the least it's over $4 a meal and I bought generic everything that was on my grocery list!! What a joke I also thought the whole idea was not to have to go to the grocery store as much... needless to say I will have to go to the grocery store before I make every meal for "extras"!

[Anonymous]

I disagree with the previous reviews. I am not a rep, just a customer. I have been using Wildtree since August. While the seasonings and sauces are a little pricey, they are super healthy - organic, non-GMO, no HFCS or bad fats, and many are gluten free. If you are trying to avoid processed foods, it can be hard to find meal helpers that don't have artificial colors or preservatives. It is true that Wildtree products are low in sodium (and lacking in MSG) but that allows you to control how much salt you like. For example, we eat a fairly low sodium diet so when we eat other seasoning mixes and sauces, we get headaches. We can use the amount of salt we like with Wildtree.

Wildtree is nothing like Penzeys (which I also use and like). Wildtree is more about seasoning blends and sauces to make your meal time faster and easier, as well as healthier. I think of Wildtree not as my source for spices but as my source for convenience foods, which I do not buy at the grocery because they are so unhealthy. I use their taco and fajita mixes because they don't have MSG and preservatives. They have a number of sauces and marinades that are quick and easy - brown the meat and add the sauce, then simmer or marinate while you are at work and bake or grill. Yes, you can buy a marinade cheaper at the store but they taste like chemicals and are full of MSG and HFCS. Wildtree marinades taste like real, fresh food. My family has loved everything but the cajun seasoning (not a flavor we enjoy). Even my pickiest eater has loved 90% of the food I've made with Wildtree.

The workshops are not cheap and yes, you can find meal prep instructions online for free. They should say it's an entree prep, not a meal prep. I was upset about that the first time too. What I like about the workshops is the planning is done for you. Again, you are paying a bit more for convenience. The workshops for me give me new ideas and recipes so I'm not always making the same 3 or 4 meals over and over. I've done 3 workshops now and have had only 2 recipes that were so-so and one that no one cared for. Again, my picky eater raves, which is almost worth the extra cost to me for the peace and quiet! I have used most of the leftover seasonings from my workshops, purchased an additional bundle, and bought some single items as well. We've enjoyed not only the recipes on the packaging but also on their website.

If you are perfectly happy with Hamburger Helper and Lawrys and similar brands, you probably aren't going to find much value in Wildtree. However, as someone who has actively avoided those commerical brands for decades and had to make all her sauces, dressings, marinades, etc. from scratch, I am really enjoying having some pre-made options that I know my family can eat without getting sick. It's really mixed up my meal rotation and added some awesome new recipes to our line up. The green curry and the potpie skillet meal have become family favorites (my kids have never had a skillet meal in their life before Wildtree). My mother-in-law eats super-healthy, way more extreme than I, and has become a huge fan of Wildtree as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Take thee to any of Penzey's local stores or their website. They have awesome, reasonably priced spices and seasonings and great variety.

Love Penzeys!! Such high quality spices and their mixes are delicious!

[Anonymous]

just had our 6th freezer meal today. Each and every one has been incredibly bland. Absolutely flavorless. Not worth the money at all.

[Anonymous]

My experience is that you can't simply throw meat, vegetables, oil, and spices in a plastic bag, freeze it, and then expect it to taste good. In most cases, there was too much liquid in the bag and threw off the texture of the meat.

[Anonymous]

Just prepared my first crock pot freezer meal. It is so dry and the flavor is just okay. Feel like I was apart of some type of scam.