There are two products from my childhood in the 1970s that I miss: Carnation Instant Breakfast Bars and Hunt's Snack Pack canned pudding.
Yes, there are products from both companies still on the market, but they're just not the same. Taste and texture are completely different now.
According to information online:
"Carnation breakfast bars were created by Carnation in 1976. The bars were made out of granola and covered in chocolate and were available in peanut butter and chocolate chip. Carnation sold the product until 1997."
Here's what they looked like:
Carnation ads 1976
The other product I miss has been taken out of the cans and put into plastic cups.
But canned pudding tastes completely different than any you make at home or that you buy in plastic.
If you ever worked food service, you know the difference.
- YouTubeyoutu.be
Other people my age—Gen X—surely have different culinary nostalgia.
Not to mention all the Boomers, Millennials and Gen Zs who have food and product nostalgia of their own.
Some of these items, I'd never heard of. So there's a bit of history and images where possible added to bring us all up to speed.
Reddit user lesspoisonousivy asked:
"What discontinued food/product do you still mourn today?"
Shark Bites
"Shark Bites—fruit snacks that blew today’s fruit snacks out of the water. Specifically, the Great White."
~ omgitsjagen
"I loved Shark Bites. In the late 80s and very early 90s, the boxes used to come with a small plastic shark, too."
"We had so many of them by the time hurricane Andrew hit that my family still finds one of those sharks every few years in the yard when planting a new tree or digging some holes."
~ ArmadilloNext9714
* Shark Bites were a Betty Crocker fruit snack introduced in 1988 that included pieces shaped like Hammerhead, Great White, and Tiger species among other special editions. The product colors, texture and flavors were heavily modified and the popularity of the product dropped drastically. The modified version is still in production.
SoBe
"SoBe."
"Give me back my lizard milk—Liz Blizz—I beg you."
~ verysorepeep
"SoBe died two deaths."
"The first time when they stopped all the flavors they made when they had the glass bottles. The second time is where they are now."
~ IAmALiteralDragon
* After years of declining sales, PepsiCo quietly took SoBe off U.S. shelves altogether during the pandemic. While they still have a website and are not entirely dead, most SoBe products are now all but impossible to find.
from Soda
Trader Joe's
"Trader Joe’s does this sh*t regularly."
"They used to have a 0% Vanilla Bean FROZEN Greek Yogurt that I bought religiously, then one day it was gone. The employees said they switched a vendor and that was that."
"They also used to have a seven layer dip—same thing. Any time I ask an employee, they say 'ohhh yeah, I remember that stuff! It was really good!', but same story about 'the vendor', and it’s just gone."
~ DoomdUser
Jelly Jars
"I miss when jelly came in glass jars designed to reuse as juice glasses."
"We had dinosaurs, endangered species, Tom and Jerry, and some others."
~ RagingAardvark
" Funny you mention this. My grandma always had these for us growing up to drink out of when we were kids. At the ripe age of 31, I randomly asked grandma where she put all those jelly jar 'cups'."
"That year for Christmas I got 30+ AMAZING JELLY CUPS. Tom and Jerry, the Flintstones, all of that!"
"I always make sure they are on display in front of the glasses my wife bought at Target and she gets so annoyed and you bet your sweet a** I drink out of them all of the time."
~ dylangoesfast
* Before the widespread of plastics, products such as jam, jelly, peanut butter, and dairy products were packaged in glass containers called packers that could be reused as drinking glasses. Glassmakers designed packers that doubled as attractive or collectible themed tumblers to promote product sales.
Rice Krispies Treats Cereal
"Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats cereal."
"A cereal based on a dessert based on a cereal."
~ ZapatasGuns
"I actually wrote to them asking if they were thinking of bringing it back. They wrote me back and offered me a coupon for Cocoa Krispies."
"I was mailed a $1.25 off coupon for any Kellogg's cereal with this response:"
"'Thank you for contacting us about Kellogg’s® Rice Krispies Treats® Cereal. We're sorry one of your favorite items has been discontinued. I am happy you liked it as much as you did, and I've shared your desire for it to return with our Sales team'."
"'At the present time, there are no plans to reintroduce this product'."
"'We understand that this news may not be what you were hoping for and we apologize for any disappointment caused'."
"'While we strive to provide a wide range of products to meet customer needs, occasionally we have to make difficult decisions based on market demand, production constraints, or changes in our product line. In this case, the decision to discontinue the product was made after careful consideration and analysis'."
"'Have you tried Kellogg's® Cocoa Krispies® cereal? Given how much you liked the products, we think you'll really enjoy this alternative'."
"'So you can try it or one of our other delicious foods, I am sending you a savings coupon that should arrive within 7 - 10 business days by US Postal Mail'."
~ saturatedregulated
* Kellogg's Rice Krispies Treats cereal was discontinued in 2019.
McDonald's Boxed Cookies
"McDonald’s boxed cookies from the 70s - early 90s."
~ Melody5556
* Back in the early 1970s, McDonaldland Cookies were added to the menu with a recipe and a package resembling Barnum's Animal Crackers. The cookies originally featured Ronald McDonald, Mayor McCheese, Grimace, Hamburgler, Captain Crook and Officer Big Mac. Over time, the cookies added/replaced the shapes with new McDonaldland characters. In the late 70s, chocolaty chip cookies were added.
McDonald's
Orville Redenbacher Caramel Microwave Popcorn
"Orville Redenbacher Caramel Microwave Popcorn with the slabs of caramel you melted in the bag."
Haven't seen it in like a decade+. I always burned the crap out of my mouth because I would eat it too soon, but it was soooo good."
~ Potential_Cat27
* Microwave caramel popcorn from multiple companies have tried different formulas and methods since its introduction, partly for consumer safety concerns.
Conagra Brands
Kudos Bars
"Kudos bars. Had the M&M one in my lunch almost every day of elementary school."
~ Hour-Telephone1082
* Kudos was a milk chocolate granola cereal bar produced by candy giant launched in 1986 with three varieties: nutty fudge, chocolate chip, and peanut butter. Future flavors included bits of Mars candy including Snickers, M&Ms, and Dove chocolate. The original intention was to offer a healthier candy bar alternative, not a granola bar. After recipe changes, sales dropped and Mars discontinued Kudos in 2017.
Mars, Inc
Dunkaroos
"The original Dunkaroos."
~ Ocean_waves726
"I don't know who needs to hear this, but if you're lamenting original Dunkaroos you're currently an adult."
"Walk into the grocery store, grab a tub of confetti frosting and whatever gram/animal/whatever cookie catches your eye and go to town."
"That's all the original Dunkaroos were to begin with. Don't let your dreams be dreams."
~ TheEngineer09
"Betty crocker rainbow chip frosting and a bag of Siete brand Mexican wedding cookies is the closest I've found to original Dunkaroos."
~ Born-Quote-6882
* Dunkaroos—individual packets of cookies with frosting to dunk into—are a snack food first introduced in 1990 and discontinued in 2012 after changes to the product. A new version was introduced in 2020.
Foil-Wrapped Snack Cakes—DingDongs Or HoHos
"I still remember the day I opened my billionth foil-wrapped HoHo which my grandma had packed me for me in my school lunch to discover that I had finally received one with 100% perfect chocolate coating—not a single crack anywhere."
~ corgiobsessedfoodie
* Both products, produced by Hostess and Drakes brands were originally wrapped in a thin sheet of foil to allow them to be added to lunches without the chocolate coating melting and making a mess. The more expensive and labor intensive foil was phased out and replaced with a piece of coated paper and cellophane.
Deep-Fried McDonald's Apple And Cherry Pies
"The old school McDonald’s apple and cherry pies."
~ pumpkinspruce
"When I worked there we would put them in the deep fryer right after the oil had been changed. SO. GOOD."
~ SirDerpingt0n
* Apple pie was the first dessert added to the McDonald’s menu in 1968 from Knoxville, Tennessee franchisee Litton Cochran's recipe/menu idea. McDonald’s USA made the decision to discontinue fried pies in 1992. They—and over 40 local varieties of fillings—are available outside the United States. One location in the continental USA still sells the fried pies: Downey, California. Hawaii still serves their pies fried.
Lemon Cooler
"Lemon Cooler cookies, the ones with the white powdered sugar on them. So good."
~ Shrimp1991
* Sunshine Biscuits distributed the original Lemon Coolers, but in the 1990's they merged with Keebler and the iconic lemon cookies disappeared from the grocery store shelves.
Fruitopia
"I used to get Fruitopia all the time back in High School. They were so good."
~ Nuwisha_Nutjob
"I just watched a movie that was released this year, but set in the 90s. There was a Fruitopia vending machine at a school. So much nostalgia."
~ uniquesobriquette
* Fruitopia made its debut in 1994 from Coca-Cola under their Minute Maid product line. Fruitopia had flavors like Strawberry Passion Awareness, Blueberry Watermelon Wisdom, Raspberry Psychic Lemonade, Citrus Consciousness, and Tangerine Wavelength as a nod to hippie-era nostalgia. By 2003, Fruitopia was completely discontinued in the USA, but lives on in Canada.
Coca-Cola
Philadelphia Snack Bars
"Philadelphia Snack Bars, Strawberry flavor."
~ NearlyCanuck
"As I was clicking on this post, I thought to myself 'someone's already mentioned those damn Philadelphia cream cheese cheesecake bars'. I miss them so much."
~ FuzzyCats
* Philadelphia Snack Bars were a snack introduced in 1999 and discontinued in the mid 2000s. Kraft Marketing Director Bazak Oguz later told My Urban Treats the snack bars were discontinued due to manufacturing challenges.
PB Crisps
"With how often PB Crisps pop up on on missed snack lists, I am surprised they have not made a come back even as a limited release thing. They must be a giant pain to make."
~ Tyranis_Hex
* According to the Bring Back PB Crisps! website:
"PB Crisps were an utterly delectable mid-90s snack food. After being discontinued for many years, there still isn't a comparable snack. Because these snacks were one-of-a-kind, PB Crisp lovers are urging Planters to bring them back."
