Baby Food

45 products ranked by Scout score

Best baby food right now

Square Baby Lil Beef Stew 100/100
Scout's analysis: Square Baby Lil Beef Stew scores a perfect 100/100. A USDA Organic frozen baby meal with just six whole-food ingredients — organic beef, purple carrot, parsnip, beef…
Square Baby Beet Berry 100/100
Scout's analysis: Square Baby Beet Berry scores a perfect 100/100. A USDA Organic yogurt-protein baby meal built on organic beet, strawberry, whole milk yogurt, and quinoa. Zero added…
Square Baby Apple Curry Chicken 100/100
Scout's analysis: Square Baby Apple Curry Chicken scores a perfect 100/100. A USDA Organic animal-protein baby meal featuring organic chicken, zucchini, peas, apple, quinoa, chicken bone…

What to skip

Earth's Best Whole Grain Rice Cereal 1/100
Scout's analysis: Earth's Best Whole Grain Rice Cereal scored 1/100. Testing detected arsenic at 138 ppb (over FDA limit), lead at 22.5 ppb (>2× FDA action level), and cadmium at 14.7…
Healthy Times Organic Brown Rice Cereal 4+ Months 1/100
Scout's analysis: Healthy Times Organic Brown Rice Cereal scored 1/100 — among the worst-tested products in the entire baby category. Lead was detected at 67.4 ppb — more than 6.7× the…
Gerber Rice Single Grain Cereal 8/100
Scout's analysis: Gerber Rice Single Grain Cereal scored 8/100. Testing detected inorganic arsenic at 106 ppb — just over the FDA action level — with cadmium at 11.1 ppb (~2× industry…

Independently lab-tested baby food

37 of the 45 products ranked here have a lab panel on their pages — each measured amount, the level it falls in and the report it comes from. The highest-scoring five:

Square Baby Lil Beef Stew 100/100
Square Baby Beet Berry 100/100
Square Baby Apple Curry Chicken 100/100
Square Baby Hazelnut Pumpkin Pie 100/100
Square Baby Lil Cashew Chicken 99/100
and 32 more in the ranking above

Ingredients to watch in baby food

The flagged ingredients that show up most often across these 45 products. Each link opens Scout's analysis of the ingredient.

Synthetic B-Vitamin Fortification in 3 of 45
Natural Flavors in 2 of 45
Sunflower Lecithin in 2 of 45
Electrolytic Iron in 2 of 45

What the better baby food have in common

Organic Sweet Potato in 7 of 45
Organic Banana in 6 of 45
Organic Lemon Juice in 6 of 45
Organic Quinoa in 5 of 45
Organic Apple in 5 of 45

Common questions about baby food

What scores highest in baby food on Scout?

Square Baby Lil Beef Stew leads Scout's baby food ranking at 100/100, followed by Square Baby Beet Berry (100) and Square Baby Apple Curry Chicken (100). Scores compare products within the category on ingredients, processing, packaging and any lab results.

What should I avoid in baby food?

Earth's Best Whole Grain Rice Cereal scores 1/100, the lowest of the 45 products Scout has analyzed in baby food; next lowest are Healthy Times Organic Brown Rice Cereal 4+ Months (1) and Gerber Rice Single Grain Cereal (8). Each product page lists the ingredients behind the number.

What drags scores down in baby food?

Across these 45 products the most common flagged ingredients are Synthetic B-Vitamin Fortification, Natural Flavors, Sunflower Lecithin, Electrolytic Iron. Each appears in at least two of the products ranked here.

Is anything in baby food independently lab tested?

37 of the 45 products on this page carry independent lab results — Square Baby Lil Beef Stew, Square Baby Beet Berry, Square Baby Apple Curry Chicken, Square Baby Hazelnut Pumpkin Pie, Square Baby Lil Cashew Chicken and 32 more. Each of their product pages shows the measured amounts, the level each falls in and the report they come from.

How does Scout score baby food?

Every product in baby food gets one 1–100 score for comparison within its category: the full ingredient list judged by a category-specific framework, the published processing level, the packaging, and any credible lab results. Lab results are disclosed, not scored. Scout takes no payment for scores or placement.

How Scout scores baby food

One 1–100 score per product, judged within its category: every ingredient on the label through a category-specific framework, the published processing level, the packaging, and any credible lab results. No brand pays for a score or a position on this list. Read the full methodology →