Huel was founded by Julian Hearn in 2014 in Aylesbury, England. The original recipe was formulated by registered nutritionistJames Collier, founder and former owner of MuscleTalk, a bodybuilding website, with the intention of providing the recommended daily amounts of nutrients as stipulated by the European Food Safety Authority, in a vegan and environmentally friendly product. The first Huel product was shipped in June 2015. A version for gluten-free diets was launched in 2016. In 2016 Huel began shipping to the rest of Europe. In June 2017, it became available in the United States. In November 2017, former Life Health Foods UK chief executive James McMaster was appointed as chief executive officer of the company to oversee its international expansion.
Products
A typical serving of Huel Powder contains 400 calories.
Huel Powder - The first Huel product to be released, it has gone through several iterations since 2015. Huel is sold in 1.7kg bags in bulk or as a subscription, with oats as the primary ingredient followed by rice, pea protein, and micronutrients. Huel Powder is made up of 37% carbohydrates, 30% fat, 30% protein, and 3% fibre. Huel Powder v3.0 is available in seven flavors: Vanilla, Unflavoured & Unsweetened, Original, Coffee, Berry, Mint-Chocolate, and Chocolate.
Huel Ready-To-Drink - Launched in 2018, Huel RTD is sold in packs of 12 bottles, in bulk, or as a subscription. Each bottle contains 500ml of Huel and provides 400 calories. Huel RTD is available in Berry, Vanilla and Chocolate flavors.
Flavour Boosts - Huel also sells Flavour Boosts. These have no nutritional value and are designed to complement Huel Powder mixes. Eleven flavours of Flavour Boosts are available from Huel.
Huel Bars - Launched in 2017, the snack bars are vegan and gluten-free. Huel Bars are made up of 36% carbohydrates, 35% fat, 24% protein, and 5% fibre.
Huel Granola - Introduced in 2018, Huel Granola is composed primarily of rolled oats.
Reviews and reception
In March 2016, an article in Coach magazine described Huel’s basic flavour as “underwhelming”, though the reviewer did note that the taste can be improved substantially with Flavour Boosts and home recipes. In May 2016, after a week-long Huel-only diet, journalist Peter Robinson wrote, "there are lumps in the mixture" and stated, "Huel doesn’t just sound like the act of vomiting, it actually feels like doing it backwards". In September 2016, Jared Hill said after a week-long Huel-only diet "I had finally freed myself from the shackles of food consumption, and let me tell you, it felt amazing." In February 2017, after a week-long trial, Tom Ough, a journalist for The Daily Telegraph described his Huel-only diet as "struggling to get enough down me to hit anywhere near my 2000-calorie RDA," saying, "I got bored of having the same thing all the time, but have lost well over three kilos despite finding it filling. I've also felt healthy throughout the experiment." He concluded that Huel was "very good", but better when used only occasionally. In July 2017, Huel was referred to as "Hipster Gruel" by Dave Gorman on . In December 2017, Forbes listed Huel amongst the best “gadgets to keep you fit and healthy”.
