Sometimes executives push snacks that seem to have been born out of boredom, so they flop. But there are other times the snacks seem like dreams, something that should have existed earlier. So when these wonderful snacks were taken from the shelves, they left a lot of people upset and full of nostalgia for the years to come. Maybe it was for the best.
- Junk food is bad for your health.
- Some snacks are sugar overkill.
- Some snacks were too weird and niche to do well in the market.
Even though they’re gone, people still like to reminisce about the snacks they lost to low sales and unpopularity. Maybe the fact that we ate them as kids has something to do with that nostalgia; all snacks and candy tasted better and more magical when we were little.
Whatever the reason, it’s worth looking back at some of the most missed snacks no longer in stores:
1. Planter’s Cheez Balls: These wonderful puffy balls of cheese disappeared in 2006 without any explanation from the company. You can always buy Utz cheeseballs, but this isn’t enough for fans of the Planter’s version. They’ve started a petition to bring back the snack on causes.com titled “Bring back Planters cheese balls!”
2. Dr. Pepper Gum. This gum had a liquid center that tasted like Dr. Pepper. Not much is known about why it was discontinued, but people who got a chance to try it say it was pretty outstanding.
3. Squeezeit. For the uninitiated, these little plastic tubes were filled with fruit-flavored juices with zany names like Chucklin’ Cherry, Berry B. Wild, Grumpy Grape and Silly Billy Strawberry. Basically, each bottle came with color pellets that you would drop into your Squeezeit bottle to change its color. It’s been discontinued in North America, but it’s still available in the UK.
4. Coke Blak: This was Coca-Cola’s coffee-flavored pop which they introduced in 2006 and discontinued in 2008. Funnily enough, it was first introduced in France and then it made its way to the United States because of the success it found there.
5. Hostess Choco Bliss: Chocolate snack fans from the 80s remember this as one of the most delicious treats at the time. It was made up of chocolate cake, chocolate cream and chocolate icing layers. The company never explained why it got rid of this treat, maybe they ordered too much extra chocolate and didn’t know what to do with it. The man in the commercial for this treat even loses his mind a little as he’s tasting it, screaming that the cake is “chocolatey, on top of chocolatey, with chocolatey in between!”
6. WWE Ice Cream Bars: These were exactly the kind of nutty thing you’d expect from the WWE. They were basically cookie ice cream sandwiches filled with vanilla and a bottom layer of chocolate, imprinted with the faces of all your favorite WWE superstars. The ice cream bars featured names like Stone Cold Steve Austin, Bret Hart, Junkyard Dog, and Jim Duggan. They were discontinued in 2009.
8. Hostess Chocodiles: These magical chocolate treats were another Hostess experiment that they inexplicably got rid of. It’s basically a Twinkie that’s been coated in chocolate, sprinkled with even more chocolate on top. Chocodiles still exist, but they’re rare to find and only a few American West Coast factories make it.
9. Jell-O 1-2-3: This triple-layered Jell-O treat was first introduced in 1969, and discontinued in 1996. The mix would separate into three distinct layers: a creamy top, a mousse-like middle, and plain Jello bottom. This was a common treat in 90s television, making appearances in The Nanny and Kids in The Hall.
10. Nintendo Cereal: This short lived cereal was ahead of its time. It was introduced in 1988 and discontinued in 1989. It was based in the two most popular games for the NES at the time: Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda. The cereal itself was pretty great, featuring Goombas, Koopa Troopas and Bowsers, but the best part were the prices. Each came with a sticker, trading cards called “Nintendo Power Cards” and it offered the chance to win a Super Mario cereal bowl.
12. Jumpin’ Jack Cheese Doritos: Doritos, like Coca-Cola, isn’t afraid to test out all sorts of flavors just to see how well they do with audiences. In 1990, they introduced a Jumpin’ Jack Monterey Cheese flavor that was discontinued. This was confusing and heartbreaking for a lot of people: corn tortillas coated in a mix of cheddar and monterey cheese, it made so much sense! The flavor was so popular among snack lovers that they started petitioning its return on Facebook and causes.com.
