The sheer number of food items that have been discontinued over the years is shocking.
It’s kind of tragic to see all the foods that were cut off before their prime.
So, buckle up and prepare yourselves for a nostalgic, and occasionally bizarre, trip
down memory lane.
Here are more of the Top 10 Discontinued Food Items We Miss.
Mud and Bugs Cereal
From the name alone, this sounds like a cereal that completely warranted discontinuation.
But this is one of those situations where you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
Mud and Bugs Cereal was actually pretty great.
What makes it even better is the fact that it’s inspired by Disney’s The Lion King.
It’s a testament to the popularity of the film that this cereal was released nine years
after the movie’s 1994 debut.
In the movie, comedic duo, Timon and Pumbaa, frequently feast on bugs.
As two of the film’s most popular characters, the creation of a cereal based off of them
and their questionable culinary habits makes sense.
The “mud” part of the name references the base of the cereal, which were puffed
grains, that were both flavored and colored like chocolate.
As for the “bugs”, the cereal also incorporated several different colored marshmallows in
the shapes of insects.
However, this cereal probably isn’t for everyone.
Some people would probably be pretty disturbed at the idea of eating anything remotely resembling
a bug, even if it were actually just a marshmallow.
If there were ever a time to bring back this cereal, it would be now, as The Lion King
has had a massive resurgence in popularity thanks to the release of the remake.
Starburst Hard Candy
Now we all know Starburst are known for being chewy and juicy but they took a different
approach for this short lived variation of their ever popular candy.
Reaching their brief peak in the 90s, Starburst Hard Candy were exactly what the name says,
a hard version of Starbursts.
This was more than likely an attempt by the folks at Starbursts to be a direct competitor
to Jolly Ranchers, which are a very popular fruit flavored hard candy.
This Starburst spin-off came in both "Original" and "Tropical" variations.
These were sold in bags with multiple flavors inside but some of the "Original" bags also
featured a fun little twist.
While standard fruit flavors like Cherry, Strawberry, Orange and Green Apple were included,
they also included a "Mystery Flavor".
These were clear in color so you couldn't just guess the flavor by it's color and while
it was a cool idea, even that didn't keep Starburst Hard Candy from being ultimately
discontinued.
For those who wish these were still around or would have loved to give them a try, you're
not completely out of luck.
Starburst actually makes candy canes which are said to be very similar in taste to the
hard candies, give them a try if you can get your hands on them.
Orbitz Drink
This Canadian beverage was sorely underappreciated.
Orbitz was an innovative, noncarbonated drink.
It’s discontinuation, which occurred shortly after its 1997 release, was attributed to
poor sales.
If people had just given this odd beverage a chance, it might have made it big.
If you’ve never heard of Orbitz, think bubble tea... but different.
The fruit flavored drinks were clear and had small, sugary balls floating in them.
The balls came in different colors depending on the flavor of the beverage and were essentially
made of gelatin.
The drink’s signature feature was the fact that the balls were suspended throughout the
beverage.
Due to the drink’s funky appearance and the shape of its glass bottle, people often
compared its appearance to that of a lava lamp.
Orbitz was flavored in several different fruit combinations, some of which were quite unusual,
such as Pineapple Banana Cherry Coconut (which was basically the entire produce section in
one drink, but it worked).
Unfortunately, advertisers went for the easy way out with Orbitz, labeling it with the
tagline “the drink with balls.”
Needless to say, that campaign failed horribly, pushing the marketing team to try a different
strategy, where they pitched the drink as a futuristic, out-of-this-world beverage from
Planet Orbitz.
In the end, it’s strange appearance and poor marketing pushed consumers away from
Orbitz, ending its run prematurely.
Keebler Munch ’ems
Let’s kick this list off with this popular snack from the nineties.
Keebler Munch ‘ems were crackers baked to the point where they were so crispy, you could
almost call them chips.
While more flavors were added after their initial success, Keebler Munch ‘ems originally
came in ranch, cheddar, original, and sour cream and onion.
So, not only did they crunch like chips, they tasted like them too!
Keebler Munch ‘ems were the ultimate compromise, because, while they were healthier than regular
potato chips, they could still satisfy even the strongest Pringles craving.
They made a great companion to lounge on the couch and watch Sunday night football or Saturday
morning cartoons with.
With them out of the picture, the only options were to turn to regular crackers or regular
chips... you can probably guess which won out in the end.
There doesn’t seem to be any given reason for why Munch ‘ems were discontinued in
the early 2000’s.
All we can say on the matter is that it was a real shame.
Sprite Remix
Released in 2003, Sprite Remix was a line of fruit-flavored sodas, based off of popular
soft drink, Sprite.
There were three flavors: Sprite Tropical Remix, Sprite Berryclear Remix, and Sprite
Aruba Jam Remix.
And, no, we have no idea what “Aruba Jam” is supposed to taste like.
The Remix lineup was actually pretty great.
These sodas were colorless, just like the original Sprite, and like the original, they
were also caffeine-free.
Sold alongside these flavors were “Remix Flavor Hits” packets, which allowed for
a bit of DIY.
All you had to do was tear open the package, pour the powder into your regular Sprite,
give it a stir and voilà!
Technically, if you were feeling ambitious, you could mix these packets together and come
up with your own unique flavors.
But that probably wasn’t recommended.
If you made it through the early 2000’s without ever hearing about this soda, it’s
probably because they were only sold for two years.
Their short run made them pretty easy to miss.
However, if you never got the chance to try them, you’re in luck.
In 2015, ten years after their discontinuation, Sprite came out with a soda called Sprite
Tropical Mix.
Sounds pretty similar to Sprite Tropical Remix, right?
That’s because it is.
So, while the other flavors have been lost to time, this one has forced its way back
into the world.
This rerelease was initially supposed to be a short-term thing, but apparently the beverage
was popular enough for Coca-Cola to fully commit to it, because it’s still being sold
to this day.
Almost Home Cookies
Nabisco's line of cookies called Almost Home were meant to be as close to homemade cookies
as you could possibly buy off the shelves, hence the name "almost" home.
The commercials for these cookies featured their slogan which was "you can almost taste
the recipe".
These cookies from Nabisco were among the first brands of soft cookies.
They used much more shortening then the average store bought cookie, which is what helped
them achieve their soft, fresh out of the oven texture and taste.
People swear that these would stay soft forever, even if left with the box open.
The box and logo featured an embroidered yarn design which was supposed to go with the whole
"homey" vibe that these were trying to give off.
They were a huge hit when first released, to the point where Nabisco put out 15 or so
different flavors, including Real Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter Fudge, Oatmeal Raisin
and Old Fashioned Sugar to name a few.
However, sales started to declined and they eventually made their way off of grocery store
shelves.
Nabisco currently makes a "chewy" variation of their ever popular Chips Ahoy! brand of
cookies.
However fans scoff at the idea that these are adequate replacements as the texture and
taste are nothing like the original beloved Almost Home cookies.
Lunchables Fudge Brownie
Lunchables were school lunch classics, in fact the original Lunchables are still being
made today.
During their peak in the 90s, they also released a "Fun Snacks" variation which were more geared
towards DIY desserts than actual lunches.
They have since been discontinued, and though many different kinds were released, including
s'mores, marshmallow crispy squares, cookies 'n frosting, the one that's missed the most
has to be the Fudge Brownie.
The Lunchables Fudge Brownie packs included a brownie, which happened to be made Hostess,
as well as a packet of fudge icing and sprinkles so you could assemble your own perfect brownie.
Lunchables even made a claymation TV Ad to promote the snack featuring a kid creatively
assembling his own Fudge Brownie.
As far as the future of the Lunchables Fudge Brownie goes, there was a failed change.org
petition started to try to bring these back, and people clamoring on the internet, but
nothing.
Seems like these are unfortunately forever a thing of the past.
Oatmeal Swirlers
Oatmeal makes for a nutritious breakfast but many people, especially children, are turned
off of it because they find it to be bland and boring.
General Mills took a stab at making this healthy food more appealing by coming up with Oatmeal
Swirlers in 1989.
If you’re up to date with food trends, you’ll know that steel cut oats and overnight oatmeal
are all the rage these days.
While they’re tasty and nutrient-dense, the required preparation time isn’t feasible
for everyone.
Instant oatmeal is infinitely more convenient, as it takes just minutes to prepare and no
pre-planning.
The longest part of the process is waiting for the water to boil.
With most instant oatmeal, once you’ve stirred the boiling water into the dry oatmeal mix,
your breakfast is ready to be eaten.
However, Oatmeal Swirlers added an extra step.
Along with packages of plain oatmeal, you were provided with packets of icing.
The packages allowed you to draw designs on your oatmeal with the icing.
This is one situation where playing with your food was actually encouraged!
Some people would draw pictures, while others would set up games, such as Tic-Tac-Toe.
Although it probably wasn’t a good idea to get too caught up in the drawing part of
things, since if it took too long, you’d be left with cold oatmeal, which isn’t remotely
appetizing.
Hostess Choco-Bliss
To all the chocolate-addicts out there, a word of warning.
This entry is going to go into graphic detail of the chocolatey properties of Choco-Bliss
and is enough to incite severe cravings.
Hostess’ Choco-Bliss doesn’t look like the most appealing dessert out there, but
what it lacks in appearance it more than makes up for in taste.
These snack-sized cakes were dubbed “the Chocolate Lover’s Dream” and their advertisements
were uncomfortably steamy.
There’s loving chocolate and then there’s... well, whatever it was those Choco-Bliss commercials
from 1986 were trying to portray.
The layered cake brought so many different chocolatey elements to the table.
There were two layers of devil’s food cake, with a light, creamy chocolate icing in between
them, and a heavy, rich chocolate frosting on top.
That’s three different kinds of chocolate in just one food item.
Can you say decadent?
You may be wondering where these delicious-sounding cakes went.
Unfortunately, we don’t have an answer.
They seemed to disappear overnight, sometime in the late eighties or early nineties.
They were actually quite popular, which makes the whole thing even more confusing.
No reason was ever given for their discontinuation, in fact, Hostess didn’t even really acknowledge
it.
Hershey’s Swoops
Hershey’s Swoops lineup was one of the best things to ever happen to the candy industry.
These candies were unique because they were packaged and shaped like Pringles chips, except
they were made completely of chocolate.
Several different varieties were released, most of them inspired by popular Hershey’s
chocolates.
These chip-shaped chocolates first hit shelves in 2003 but were ultimately discontinued in
2006.
The concept was a promising one, but, in the end, the sales weren’t what Hershey had
hoped.
Sales just weren’t good enough for them to justify continuing to produce the product.
While it’s a shame, you can also kind of see why this food item didn’t soar to great
heights.
Once the novelty wore off, consumers realized that Swoops were just the same old chocolate
in a different form.
They didn’t really bring anything new to the table outside of their shape.
While these thin slices of chocolate were good, why would you settle for Swoops when
you had the option to buy a satisfying chocolate bar in exactly the same flavor?
Regardless, this food item was a cool idea and we’re sad that Swoops and chocolate
bars couldn’t peacefully exist alongside one another.
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