Breakfast cereals have filled cupboards, graced kitchen tables and been munched by people getting dressed/looking for their keys/rushing out the door since the mid-1800s. From the first manufactured cereal, Granula – so tough on the teeth it had to be soaked overnight – to the novelty cereals of the 1980s and 1990s, they’ve also reflected the times. Here’s a selection box of delights through the years, from classics invented the decade you were born to varieties that spiked in popularity.
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1940s: Cheerios
Those little Os have been around for oh-so long. They were originally called Cheerioats, and were the first ready-to-eat oat cereal. The name was simplified to the catchier Cheerios in 1945, and they’ve been swimming in milk in bowls around the globe ever since.
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1940s: Raisin Bran
Two cereal giants – Kellogg’s and Post Cereals – launched a Raisin Bran in 1942, making it a ubiquitous cupboard staple. The ingredients are simple – raisins and wheat bran – and its high-fiber content made it a popular choice for health-conscious breakfasters.
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1940s: Rice Krispies
Snap, Crackle and Pop have actually been making mornings a little noisier since 1928, when Kellogg’s first marketed the puffed-rice cereal. But they reached peak popularity in the 1940s, when all three elf mascots had been introduced and Rice Krispies Treats – where the cereal is stirred with marshmallows and melted butter and set into delicious little squares – were already a thing.
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1940s: Shreddies
Launched in 1939 as Cubs, Shreddies got their better-known moniker two years later. Manufactured by Post in Canada and Nestlé in the UK, the latticed, wholegrain wheat squares have proved to be an enduring classic – though the original flavor has since been joined by other varieties, including Brown Sugar + Granola and Honey.
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1940s: Sugar Crisp
Launched by Post in 1948, Sugar Crisp was an early adopter of the (unsurprisingly successful) ‘coat it in sugar’ strategy. It’s had more name changes than we’ve had cold breakfasts, switching to Super Sugar Crisp, then Super Golden Crisp and, finally, to Golden Crisp – as it’s still sold in the US today. The sugar-coated puffed wheat is similar to the UK’s Honey Monster Puffs, formerly known as Sugar Puffs.
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1950s: Corn Flakes
Having been rationed with restricted availability during the Second World War, Kellogg’s Corn Flakes were back in kitchens and bowls with a vengeance in the 1950s. Whether you like yours drenched in ice-cold milk or with just a splash (or love them with or without sugar sprinkled on top), their classic status is undeniable.
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1950s: Alpha-Bits
Post’s Alpha-Bits were both a breakfast cereal and a spelling lesson rolled into one. Each box was stuffed with frosted wholegrain corn and oat letters so kids could make words in their milk, then devour them. It disappeared in 2006 but made a comeback two years later, and now has a ‘new and improved’ recipe and larger letters.
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1950s: Frosties
Tony the Tiger was unleashed on breakfast tables in the mid-1950s as the roarsome mascot of Kellogg’s Frosties cereal, originally called Sugar Frosted Flakes. It was a huge success and the crunchy, sugar-coated corn flakes are still a morning (and, sometimes, after-pub) favorite.
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1950s: Trix
Trix launched in 1954 as a sugary version of General Mills’ Kix cereal, and to say it was colorful would be an understatement. The cereal, a lower sugar version of which is still sold today, consists of corn cereal pieces sweetened and given fruity names like ‘orangey orange’ and ‘lemony yellow’. They were later shaped to look like fruit pieces too.
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1960s: Cap’n Crunch
Mascots appear to be the real secret to longevity in the cereal world. Cap’n Crunch, launched in 1963, is a case in point. This moustachioed naval captain has helped to launch various versions of the colorful corn and oat cereal, from the original, with a taste of brown sugar and butter, to berry-shaped pieces, peanut butter flavor and even cotton candy.
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1960s: Cocoa Krispies
Known as Coco Pops in the UK and Choco Pops in France, these are, effectively, chocolatey Rice Krispies – and were an instant kids’ favorite for obvious reasons. Not that adults were (or are) immune to their cocoa charms and their impressive ability to turn milk chocolatey.
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1960s: Froot Loops
Toucan Sam flew onto breakfast tables in 1962 and has kept visiting ever since. The cereal is as bold and colorful as the mascot’s beak, with fruit-flavored circles in vivid colors of purple, yellow, blue and orange. Basically, it’s exactly what kids want to see in their bowls.
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1960s: Quisp
Quaker’s sweet and crunchy corn cereal, shaped like little saucers, has a storied past. It was launched in 1965 along with a sister cereal, Quake, which was discontinued in the 1970s after the company asked the public to vote on which one to keep. Quisp vanquished another breakfast contender shortly afterwards: the public also said they preferred it to Quaker’s orange-infused cereal, Quangaroo.
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1960s: Lucky Charms
Those cheeky little leprechauns were always trying to keep people away from their Lucky Charms, and who could blame them? This 1964-launched cereal was (and still is) pure fun and color in a bowl, with a rainbow of oat pieces in myriad shapes from clovers to crescent moons. It even has marshmallows! What sweet-toothed child could resist?
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1970s: Alpen
It’s hard to imagine a more yuppy breakfast than a bowl of muesli, and Alpen certainly helped spread its popularity when it launched in 1971. The idea came from one of Weetabix’s board members, after he tried Swiss muesli on a family ski trip.
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1970s: Granola
Nature Valley launched its packaged granola in 1973 – the first granola on the mass market. Suddenly, crunching on clusters of toasted oats and nuts bound by honey was no longer seen as the domain of hippies and the ultra health-conscious. Instead it became a mainstay in breakfast bowls (or sprinkled on yogurt).
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1970s: Golden Grahams
These crunchy, toasty, brown-sugar doused squares were instantly popular after being launched in 1975. And, as demonstrated by this 1978 Woman’s Day ad, they could also be mixed with nuts for a sophisticated (and, judging by the model’s expression, very moreish) cocktail snack.
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1970s: Cookie Crisp
We were essentially given permission to eat cookies and milk for breakfast when Cookie Crisp cereal launched in 1977. The mini choc-chip circles are actually made with wholegrain and have added minerals and iron, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t been wolfed down happily by kids for generations.
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1970s: Count Chocula
This sweet-on-the-inside bloodsucking vampire was one of the mascots for the Monsters range of scary cereals by General Mills. Others included Boo Berry, Franken Berry and Fruit Brute. Now, they spookily appear around Halloween each year, the only season they’re widely available.
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1970s: Honey Nut Cheerios
Invented in 1979, Honey Nut Cheerios were basically the delicious little Os made even more delicious with the addition of, well, honey and crushed nuts. They soared in popularity and quickly became the biggest-selling variety. Today, it’s the most popular cereal in the US.
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1980s: Crunchy Nut Corn Flakes
Invented in 1980, these are Kellogg’s Corn Flakes drenched in honey and coated with chopped peanuts – and, as everyone who’s ever munched them straight from the box knows, they are irresistibly delicious. They’ve been a hit since they were launched in the UK, though didn’t make it across the Atlantic until 2011. They’re now sold simply as ‘Crunchy Nut’.
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1980s: Special K
These knobbly, toasty-tasting flakes were invented in 1955 and, as this 1960s ad shows, were marketed as a low-calorie and high-protein option. But, for many, they will always be associated with 1980s. It was in this decade that Kellogg’s began its red swimsuit (later, a red dress) adverts and people were encouraged to eat a bowl of cereal for lunch or dinner – as part of a calorie-controlled diet, of course.
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1980s: Frosted Mini Wheats
Although they made their US debut back in 1970, it was a decade later when these bite-sized cubes of shredded wheat hit shelves – and landed in bowls with a plink-plonk – in other countries, with much aplomb. In fact they are still satisfying morning appetites today. The dinky size made them more appetizing, somehow, and also meant the milk soaked in quickly, making eating them a race against sogginess.
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1980s: Cinnamon Toast Crunch
The 1980s was surely a golden decade for cereal. Golden, sugary and cinnamon-y, in fact, as 1984 saw the dawn of what’s become a steadfast favorite, Cinnamon Toast Crunch. The crisp squares are made with rice and wheat and coated in sugar and the warm spice of cinnamon to evoke cinnamon toast or buns.
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1980s: Ready brek
This ground oat cereal was first launched in 1957 as an instant porridge. But it was in the 1980s, when it was marketed as ‘central heating for kids’, that it really became a cult breakfast hit. Who could forget the Ready brek glow?
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1990s: Rice Krispies Treats
Rice Krispies came full circle when Kellogg’s launched this spin on the classic in 1993. The cereal king effectively took Rice Krispies Treats (also known as Squares in the UK) – a kids’ party favorite made with the puffed rice cereal, melted butter and marshmallows – broke them up and put them back in the box. Genius.
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1990s: French Toast Crunch
General Mills launched this cinnamon and syrup-laced cereal in 1995, and you’d be forgiven for thinking such a novelty food wouldn’t last the distance. But normal rules don’t apply in the cereal world, and these tiny toast-shaped pieces continue to be a favorite bowl-filler today.
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1990s: Oreo O’s
The 1990s was clearly a decade of sweet decadence when it came to breakfast cereals. Oreo O’s launched in the late Nineties and is a dream for the sweet-toothed. Each box basically contains Oreo cookies deconstructed as breakfast cereal, with little chocolatey loops and a ‘creme’ coating. Many hearts were broken when they were discontinued in 2007 – and mended again when they made a comeback a decade later.
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2000s: Honey Bunches of Oats
Post’s cutely named cereal debuted on shelves and in bowls in 1989 and has been one of the USA’s bestselling cereals since. In the Noughties it became the second-biggest seller, behind Honey Nut Cheerios, and people still can’t get enough of the sweet little clusters of oats.
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2000s: Good Friends
Kashi Good Friends cereal, now owned by Kellogg’s, followed a very different path to the confections of the 1990s, packing in the fiber. It’s the Chex Mix of cereals, with wholegrain flakes, sweetened granola and, erm, twigs – which are thankfully made of bran, not branches.
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2000s: Smorz
Based on everyone’s favorite campfire treat, s’mores, Smorz (see what they did there?) launched in 2003 but was discontinued 10 years later. (Though there are constant calls to bring it back.) The little pockets were made up of Graham cracker cereal coated with chocolate and mixed up with marshmallows.
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