Best Lunch Boxes

With the Industrial Revolution, when people would be away from home for the entire working day, it became popular to pack lunch to eat at work. The Thermos company marketed the vacuum flask to keep drinks hot or cold—and then marketed it as an addition to lunch boxes in 1904. In 1935, they started making lunch boxes for school children. The lunch boxes would be laminated with familiar cartoon characters. Nowadays, lunch boxes have become “mini-coolers”: the lunch boxes are themselves insulated to keep food hot or cold. Some accommodate an ice pack, that you freeze at night and take along with you. But there is still a wide variety of types and patents of lunch boxes. Here is a guide to some of the best types of lunch boxes on the market.

• Fabric--There are lunch boxes made from a soft fabric, such as polyester. They are insulated to keep food and drinks at their ideal temperature. They can more easily be called a “cooler bag” than an actual box, even though they still have a rectangular shape.

• Metal—These will be made from tin, aluminum or steel, which are good at protecting the food inside from getting squashed. But the lunch box itself will tend to be rigid.

• Plastic—There are rigid plastic lunch boxes. They can consist of a clear plastic container with a tight fitting lid. An example of such a design is Rubbermaid's LunchBlox: Each food can be put in a separate container, which can be assembled and snapped together like building blocks. The entire assembly is then to be placed in a plastic carrying case, to ensure that none of the containers gets lost.

Based on all the consumers' reviews we've scanned, these are the top things they mentioned about their new stuff:

• Mesh pouch: Some soft lunch boxes, like the Wildkin Lunch Box, have a mesh pouch inside. That can be used to hold an ice pack, so you can keep the food inside cold. It can also hold a spoon and napkin, or snacks that can't be crushed. The Wildkin also has a Velcro strap. You can use that to secure a soda can, so that the soda doesn't bounce around while you're walking. (You know what happens when you open a soda that has been shaken.)

• Novelty designs: There are also novelty designed lunch boxes. For example, Thermos makes a lunch box in the form of R2D2, complete with lights and sound.

• Compartmentalized: The Rubbermaid LunchBlox has the advantage of letting you store a different food in each container. There's less chance of things spilling or leaking that way.

• Materials of the lunch box: The Attican lunch box is made from high-density polyester, for added durability.

• Dimensions: You should select the lunch box by its dimensions, to determine its capacity. The Attican Hango lunch box offers one lunch box of 6 x 6 x 10 inches (360 cubic inches) and 5 x 5 x 7.5 inches (187.5 cubic inches).

• Age group: Many lunch boxes will be sold according to the intended age group. Fabric, vinyl and plastic boxes will be more popular for school age children, whereas metal boxes are primarily used by working age men.

• Free of dangerous chemicals: In 2002, there was a recall of vinyl lunch boxes after it was discovered that some contained dangerous levels of lead. Plastics are convenient, but there is public awareness about allergic reactions and side effects from certain plastics (not to mention the characteristic smell). If you are buying a plastic lunch box, look for one that is PVC, BPA and phthalate-free.

• Easy to clean: Metal and hard plastic boxes are easy to clean, since they don't absorb stains from spills. But fabric lunch boxes can also feature a removable liner that can be washed. Some fabric lunch boxes are even washing machine/dishwasher safe.

Wildkin—was started in Nashville, Tennessee in 1996. They purchased Olive Kids in 2014, and they run a line of home décor products together. Besides bedding, they also market backpacks, sleeping bags, and lunch bags.

Thermos—was founded in 1904 and is based in Chicago, Illinois. They are manufacturers of insulated food and beverage containers, lunch boxes, and specialty items.

Rubbermaid—is presently a subsidiary of Newell Brands. They were originally founded in 1920 as Wooster Rubber Company. They started with dustpans, but then rapidly expanded to all sorts of household goods for organizing and storage, as well as commercial solutions for food services, sanitary maintenance, waste handling, material transport, and more. They are located in Winchester, Virginia.

Attican—is a maker of kitchen utensils and aids. They make cocktail shakers, ice cream scoops, coasters, cooler bags, and lunch boxes. They are located in Pompano Beach, Florida.