frequently asked questions
Our line of classics jar purees (which used to be called Beech-Nut® Classics) has gotten an upgrade! We have improved this line to remove artificial ingredients like ascorbic acid and citric acid. Now, all Beech-Nut® fruit and veggie purees have nothing artificial added. Other than that, the recipe for the jars remains the same, with the same flavor and smooth texture your baby is used to.
The new look for the Classics jars helps communicate the promise of real food with larger graphics so it’s even easier to spot your favorite fruit or veggie combination on shelf.
These product improvements come at no additional cost to our moms & dads. The new products are still WIC™ eligible wherever they were previously.
Our Beech-Nut® Organics line of baby food is certified USDA organic.
Browse our organic products here, including jar purees and cereals.
At Beech-Nut®, we make foods for babies using simple, natural ingredients from places that nurture their fruits and vegetables and care about their quality. Beech-Nut Naturals® start with real fruits & veggies that are gently cooked to help preserve their nutrients, vibrant color, and flavor.
To learn more about our Naturals process, click here.
Did you know we test for 255 pesticides, toxins, and heavy metals?
We have an entire department dedicated to ingredient sourcing. Research goes into finding the phenomenal food that goes into our jars. We build relationships with farms we can trust, and look for opportunities to buy locally whenever we can – like how all of our apples for our Naturals™ range come from about three hours away in upstate New York! We do what it takes to make sure we are using only the best, including turning food away when it isn’t up to our standards.
To read more about our quality standards, click here.
The key is in our cooking process, which uses both deaeration and gentle heating. In deaeration we remove air from the puree so the food isn’t exposed to oxygen, which would cause browning and decomposition. The food is then gently cooked, which deactivates enzymes and bacteria that could further break down the food and allows the product to be shelf stable. This is similar to what you’d do when canning at home.
We’re working with the Non-GMO Project to verify all our products. We believe that the Non-GMO Project’s seal is a good fit for our products because it is trustworthy, defensible and transparent and (most important) requires ongoing testing. Right now, over 100 of our products are Non-GMO Project verified, and we’re pursuing all the rest! Look for the butterfly on our packaging in stores. You can learn more and check on the status of our approvals on the Non-GMO Project’s website: livingnongmo.org
Any of our products that do not contain wheat or oat are gluten-free. All allergen information is clearly listed on each product’s label. See a full list of our products here.
Currently, some of our products are certified Kosher. See a full list here.
We do not have any products that are Halal at this time
We list eight food allergens (wheat, soy, milk, egg, fish, shellfish, tree nuts & peanuts) on our labels in accordance with FDA requirements. This information is printed clearly on the labels of those products. Click on each product page to view their ingredients.
Please visit www.beechnut.com/allergens to see which of our products do contain wheat, milk or egg.
We will start listing products that may contain trace levels of sesame in January 2023.
To learn more about when and how to introduce allergens to your baby, click here.
None of our baby foods contain the soy allergen. Search our foods here.
The broth in our Stage 1 meat jars (Beef & Beef Broth jar, Chicken & Chicken Broth jar, and Turkey & Turkey Broth jar) is just meat and water. There is no onion, garlic, or other spices in these jars.
Glyphosate is a commonly used pesticide, and traces of this chemical can remain on foods sourced from U.S. farms. We want to reassure parents that all Beech-Nut® foods are healthy, nutritious and safe. Our glyphosate standard is 10 times more rigorous than the EPA’s regulatory standard, and for certified organic products, our standard is set at zero. For example, the oat flour in our infant cereal is tested to help ensure that it meets our high standards. Just like you would, we send it back if it doesn’t meet our standards.
Instead of removing all the good fibers in fruits and veggies, we keep them in. This gives you the nutritional value you’d expect of your homemade foods. Separation or clumping is natural and you may see some of these fibers settle to the bottom of the jar or clump together. Simply stir or shake the jar to mix these fibers in before feeding.
Beech-Nut® cereal is iron fortified to help support your baby’s brain development as a vital nutrient. Iron appears as black specks in the cereal and is completely safe for your baby to consume.
Even the highest quality, organic and non-GMO fruits and vegetables contain trace amounts of lead because this contaminant commonly occurs naturally in soil. The FDA states that: “Because lead may be present in environments where food crops are grown and animals used for food are raised, various foods may contain unavoidable but small amounts of lead that do not pose a significant risk to human health.” We have strict standards and test for up to 255 contaminants for every batch of food we make. Read about our Food Quality and Safety standards here.
First, look at our FAQS to see if the answer is below. If you have an issue with one of our products, please contact our Consumer Engagement Team via our contact us form. You can also call our Consumer Help Line: 800-233-2468 (open Monday – Friday 8am – 5pm EST) or send us a message via Facebook or Twitter.
Every baby is different! Talk to your pediatrician to understand when your baby is ready to try solid foods in conjunction with formula or breast milk. A good rule of thumb is to start trying solids around 4-6 months. Your doctor can help you decide when to start and what to try first with a feeding plan. For more information, check out tips from our pediatric nutrition specialist Nicole Silber here on our blog. These are signs your doctor looks for to determine that your baby is ready:
- When your baby can sit with your support.
- When your baby can hold her head up and turn her head away when she’s full.
- When your baby can take food from a spoon and has learned to swallow.
We recommend serving at room temperature or slightly warmed. If using a microwave, be sure to stir thoroughly, and always test the temperature before serving it to your baby, as uneven heating may occur (note: Do not microwave Beech-Nut® jars that contain meat). A safe alternative to microwaving is placing your jar in a bowl of warm water, then stirring and testing the temperature. Also, it’s best that you don’t feed directly from the jar, to prevent bacteria growth.
These ages are only suggested ranges since every baby develops differently. Do not begin to introduce Stage 3® foods until you are sure your baby has the teeth needed to enjoy these foods. To filter all of our products by the age of your baby, try our search tool here!
- Stage 1® from about 4 months – a delicious introduction to single-ingredient solid food.
- Stage 2® from about 6 months – introduces more single-ingredient foods and perfect pairings of two or more favorites.
- Stage 3® from about 8 months – provides new tastes, new textures and new colors that a few new teeth can enjoy.
- Stage 4® from about 12 months – introduces more complex ingredients for supporting healthy growth and development.
Once you’ve tried Stage 1® single-ingredient foods and learned which ones agree with your baby, you can serve mixtures of those foods. Unless your doctor says otherwise, a good rule of thumb is to start mixed-ingredient foods at about six months. There are a few things to keep in mind:
- If your baby was sensitive to any single food, don’t feed a combination food that contains it.
- It’s okay to keep single-ingredient foods in your baby’s diet.
- Breast milk or formula is the critical foundation of your baby’s diet for the first 12 months, so keep feeding at every meal.
Each year’s crop can be slightly different, as you’d expect in your own home garden from season to season. This can result in a product that is slightly thicker or thinner, or a product that may also taste slightly different from each other because of crop variety.
Always check with your doctor if your baby shows any sign of an allergic reaction. Food allergy reactions vary greatly. Symptoms can include difficulty in breathing, constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, skin rash, coughing, runny nose and watery eyes. A good rule to follow is to introduce just one new food every 3 to 5 days to help identify any possible allergies. With this in mind, our Beech-Nut® Stage 1® foods are “single-ingredient” foods, and all our cereals are soy-free, to provide you a convenient and healthful way to check for food allergies in your little one.
Take extra care when handling and preparing any baby food, since infants and young children can be more vulnerable to foodborne illnesses (caused by bacteria or viruses, for example salmonella). The most important rule: always wash your hands before feeding time, since your hands can pick up harmful bacteria from pets, raw food, soil, or diapers. Here are some other tips for safe feeding.
- Inspect the baby food’s packaging before you serve it, ensuring that the safety button on the lid of the jar is down and that pouches aren’t swelling or leaking.
- Always use a clean spoon for serving, and don’t put the spoon in your mouth or anyone else’s mouth.
- Never leave opened baby food out at room temperature for more than two hours.
- Store opened baby food in the refrigerator, but only for a maximum of three days. “When in doubt, throw it out!”
- See the FDA’s safe feeding and handling tips here. This page includes information about how to microwave baby food, how to store unused baby food, and when to call the doctor if you think your baby has a foodborne illness.
Unfortunately, we do not have a direct to consumer online ordering program. Typically, we only sell to retail partners who order truckloads of food. We would love to be able to sell directly however, as a small company, we do not currently have the capability to ship directly to parents’ homes. If you are looking for alternative stores where you can find our products, check out our store locator.
All stores and online retailers that carry Beech-Nut® foods can be found via our store locator.
Yes, try our store locator to see which items you can buy online at Walmart.com, Target.com, Kroger.com, and, now, Amazon!
We believe in real food for all. That’s why we’re proud to offer our delicious baby foods, made simply with just real ingredients to families in the WIC™ program. Find eligible products in your area as well as other information about the program here.
Yes, we periodically post coupons on our website and social media accounts like Facebook. Or, you can sometimes find cash-back offers on the mobile app, Ibotta. Be sure to sign up for our newsletter to receive valuable offers for your baby’s age.
No, we do not currently have a free samples program. You can sign up for our newsletter here to find out about upcoming promotions.
All Beech-Nut pouches are processed and packaged with the highest safeguards and controls. Each pouch has two safety features: a tamper-evident seal that clicks when the cap is unscrewed and a “best by” date located on the bottom of the back (printed as “B B Day Month Year”). Parents and caregivers should always ensure that any pouch they are offering a child clicks upon initial opening, is within the best by date, and is not ripped, damaged, unsealed, leaking, bloated, hard or solid as that could indicate the contents have been compromised. Please do not consume the food inside if there is any reason to believe your pouch has been compromised in any way. We will happily replace the damaged pouch through our Consumer Help Line at 1-800-233-2468.
All products are designed to be stored at room temperature before opening. Freezing before use is not recommended. After opening, please refer to the label on each individual product for proper handling and storage information.
Beech-Nut® was the first U.S. baby food to use recyclable glass jars, which protect the taste, smell or texture of our foods.
Our glass jars make it easy to see what’s inside: the beautiful colors and natural textures of nothing but real fruits and vegetables. A few more reasons to love our jars:
- They are infinitely recyclable.
- They’re BPA-free (like all of our packaging!)
- There are a million fun ways to reuse them (check out our DIYs)
Not currently, but we are listening to your feedback and are actively working on a recyclable pouch option.
- For cereals—the best by date can be found on the bottom of the canister.
- For jars—the best by date can be found on the top or side of the lid.
- For pouches—the best by date can be found on the bottom of the pouch near the barcode.
- For Melties—the best by date can be found on the bottom of the pouch near the barcode.
- Toddler Snack Bars—the best by date can be found on the bottom of the carton and on each individual bar.
No BPAs are used in the formulation of any of our packaging materials (pouches, jars, lids, material inside our lids, canisters, etc.)
The texture and color of our purees will change if the jars are stored improperly. This is because ingredients like bananas are a temperature-sensitive. For example, when bananas are exposed to extreme temperatures, they can become clumpy. They can also turn pink or develop a thick film that may look like the skin you would find on pudding. If your jar is showing any of these characteristics, then the jar was most likely not stored according to our guidelines. While there are no health or food safety risks associated with the affected jars, they are not up to the quality of the food we strive to produce. Please call our Consumer Help Line: 1–800-233–2468 and we will happily replace the damaged jars.
Every jar of Beech-Nut food should pop when you open it. If your jar didn’t pop, don’t use the food. We will happily replace your damaged jar if you call our Consumer Help Line: 1-800-233-2468 and let us know.
Most of our foods are produced at our headquarters in Amsterdam, New York. We’ve been a proud resident of upstate New York since 1891. Some foods, like our snacks and some pouches, are produced elsewhere.
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We take quality complaints very seriously. If you have an issue with one of our products, please call our Consumer Help Line: 800-233-2468 (open Monday-Friday 8am-5pm EST) or send us a message.