FOODSOURCE, ZONE FRESH LAUNCH UPSCALE MEAL SERVICE

Matthew Enis

BRYN MAWR, Pa. -- Foodsource, Clemens Markets' prepared-foods and gourmet market concept, has joined with Zone Fresh Philly to offer an upscale, daily meal delivery service for customers in the Philadelphia area.

Featuring meals that adhere to The Zone diet's guidelines, the service delivers healthy gourmet meals and snack foods to clients for $35 to $40 per day.

Although a $1,200 monthly price tag may limit the program's appeal, similar daily meal delivery services have found a successful niche in several urban areas. The services offer a solution for professionals who want to lose weight or just eat healthier, but don't feel they have time to cook, plan menus, count calories, or measure portions at restaurants.

Launched in 1987, Los Angeles-based NutriFit pioneered what it described as "personal catering," offering tailored, daily gourmet meals that aid in weight loss, healthy weight gain, and management of diseases like diabetes. The sector's recent expansion, primarily in major coastal cities, was spurred by the growth of diets like The Zone and Atkins.

"For people who eat on the run a lot, particularly young professionals, it's actually not a bad deal," said Emily DiTomo, spokeswoman for foodsource. "You don't have to worry about going to the store or preparing your meals. It's fast, it's convenient and, most importantly, it's healthy."

The Zone, which encourages followers to get 30% of their daily calories from lean proteins, 30% from healthy fats, and 40% from healthy carbohydrates, allows for a broad range of menu options, said DiTomo.

"All meals are based on those percentages. Where diets such as Atkins are focused on protein, protein, protein, The Zone is more balanced," she explained.

Meals will be prepared by foodsource's "Chef's Kitchen" department, which already does brisk prepared-foods business from two locations in the affluent Bryn Mawr and Glen Mills suburbs of Philadelphia. A third location is scheduled to open this month in Greenville, Del.

Menu selections will change daily, and will include items like vegetable egg frittatas with a side of fruit for breakfast, chicken satay with couscous and steamed vegetables for lunch, and Asian-glazed salmon with steamed snow peas for dinner. Clients will receive all three meals, plus snacks like a chocolate mousse pudding with roasted almonds, delivered in insulated cooler bags every morning to their home or office. Clients can purchase the service in five-, 15- or 30-day packages.

Portions are controlled for clients who wish to lose weight. Zone Fresh Philly said weight loss of one to two pounds of fat weekly can be expected for those who do not deviate from the delivered meals.

Arlene Sherman, president of Zone Seattle, which offers a similar service to those in Seattle and Portland, Ore., last year told the Associated Press that her company had 160 clients, a membership base that, if consistent, would net more than $2.3 million annually at that program's median cost of $40 per day.

For customers who may balk at committing to an expensive long-term service, another company, Zone Diet At Home, which delivers daily in the New York metropolitan area, has offered solutions like a 21-day diet plan geared toward helping clients slim down quickly before events like weddings and school reunions.