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Honey Smacks (formerly known as Sugar Smacks, simply known as Smacks outside the U.S. in international markets) is a sweetened
puffed wheat Puffed grains are grains that have been expanded ("puffed") through processing. They have been made for centuries with the simplest methods like popping popcorn. Modern puffed grains are often created using high temperature, pressure, or extrusi ...
breakfast cereal Cereal, formally termed breakfast cereal (and further categorized as cold cereal or warm cereal), is a traditional breakfast food made from processed cereal grains. It is traditionally eaten as part of breakfast, or a snack food, primarily in ...
made by
Kellogg's The Kellogg Company, doing business as Kellogg's, is an American multinational food manufacturing company headquartered in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States. Kellogg's produces cereal and convenience foods, including crackers and toaste ...
, noted for its high sugar content. It was introduced in the early 1950s. In Britain, a similar cereal is
Honey Monster Puffs Honey Monster Puffs are a honey-flavoured breakfast cereal made from sugar-coated wheat sold in the United Kingdom. The cereal was originally sold as Sugar Puffs, but was re-branded in 2014. It was labeled as Honey Monster Sugar Puffs for a t ...
.


Naming

Introduced in 1953, the cereal has undergone several name changes. It started out as "Sugar Smacks". In the 1980s, it was renamed "Honey Smacks", in order to comply with cereals becoming healthier, even though the sugar content stayed the same. In the early 1990s, the word "Honey" was dropped from the name and the product was then simply called "Smacks". That name is still used in Germany, Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, and France. However, in the US the name reverted to "Honey Smacks" in 2004. In the UK in 1957, a similar product called
Sugar Puffs Honey Monster Puffs are a honey-flavoured breakfast cereal made from sugar-coated wheat sold in the United Kingdom. The cereal was originally sold as Sugar Puffs, but was re-branded in 2014. It was labeled as Honey Monster Sugar Puffs for a t ...
debuted. In
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
and
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
, it is known as "Honni Korn Smacks". In Australia, the cereal had been known as Honey Smacks since the 1970s. However, Kellogg's Australia no longer markets the brand.


Sugar content

Presweetened breakfast cereals first appeared in 1939. At the time of its introduction in the early 1950s, Sugar Smacks had the highest sugar content in the US cereal market (55% per weight), surpassing
Sugar Crisp Golden Crisp, also known as Sugar Crisp in Canada, is a brand of breakfast cereal made by Post Consumer Brands that consists of sweetened, candy-coated puffed wheat and is noted for its high sugar content. It was introduced in the US in 1948. H ...
(later renamed "Golden Crisp") by competitor
Post Cereal Post Consumer Brands (previously Post Cereals and Postum Cereals; also known as simply "Post") is an American breakfast cereal manufacturer headquartered in Lakeville, Minnesota. The company, founded in 1895 by C. W. Post, owns a large portfoli ...
which had debuted with what ''The Oxford Companion to Sugar and Sweets'' would later call "an astonishing sugar content of 51 percent". (The cereals are both sweetened puffed wheat.) In a 2008 comparison of the nutritional value of 27 cereals, US magazine ''
Consumer Reports Consumer Reports (CR), formerly Consumers Union (CU), is an American nonprofit consumer organization dedicated to independent product testing, investigative journalism, consumer-oriented research, public education, and consumer advocacy. Founded ...
'' found that both Honey Smacks and the similar
Golden Crisp Golden Crisp, also known as Sugar Crisp in Canada, is a brand of breakfast cereal made by Post Consumer Brands that consists of sweetened, candy-coated puffed wheat and is noted for its high sugar content. It was introduced in the US in 1948. Hi ...
were still the two brands with the highest sugar content, more than 50 percent (by weight), commenting "There is at least as much sugar in a serving of Kellogg's Honey Smacks ..as there is in a glazed
doughnut A doughnut or donut () is a type of food made from leavened fried dough. It is popular in many countries and is prepared in various forms as a sweet snack that can be homemade or purchased in bakeries, supermarkets, food stalls, and franc ...
from
Dunkin' Donuts Dunkin' Donuts LLC, also known as Dunkin' and by the initials DD, is an American multinational coffee and doughnut company, as well as a quick service restaurant. It was founded by Bill Rosenberg (1916–2002) in Quincy, Massachusetts, in 195 ...
". ''Consumer Reports'' recommended parents choose cereal brands with better nutrition ratings for their children. The product title ''Honey Smacks'' is inconsistent, with honey being a minor ingredient in the recipe. The ingredient label implies that sugar and dextrose are at least two-thirds of the sugar ingredients by weight. Conversely, the proportion of honey in the recipe could range from trace amounts to one-third.


2018 recall

Kellogg's announced a voluntary recall of certain Honey Smacks packages on June 14, 2018, due to the possible presence of
salmonella ''Salmonella'' is a genus of rod-shaped (bacillus) Gram-negative bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae. The two species of ''Salmonella'' are ''Salmonella enterica'' and ''Salmonella bongori''. ''S. enterica'' is the type species and is fur ...
. Although the recall included only packages with a specific range of expiration dates, the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...
later advised consumers to avoid eating the cereal entirely. The cereal returned to the shelves in November of that year.


Marketing history

Since the cereal was introduced in 1953, there have been various different mascots.


United States

Cliffy the Clown Various
clown A clown is a person who performs comedy and arts in a state of open-mindedness using physical comedy, typically while wearing distinct makeup or costuming and reversing folkway-norms. History The most ancient clowns have been found in ...
s served as the advertising
mascot A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...
from 1953 to 1956, including
Cliffy the Clown ''Cliffy Sobier'' (June 25, 1891 - September, 1984), known professionally as Cliffy the Clown was an American clown beginning in 1949. The clown debuted on an ABC-TV show called ''Super Circus''. The family oriented show aired on Sunday aftern ...
and
Lou Jacobs Johann Ludwig Jacob (January 1, 1903 – September 13, 1992), professionally known as Lou Jacobs, was a German-born American Clown#Auguste, auguste clown who performed for Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus for more than 60 years. ...
from the
Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (also known as the Ringling Bros. Circus, Ringling Bros., the Barnum & Bailey Circus, Barnum & Bailey, or simply Ringling) is an American traveling circus company billed as The Greatest Show on Ear ...
. Ads with these clowns were known for showing them doing the "Sugar Smack Swing". Smaxey the Seal In 1957, a sailor-suit-wearing
seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...
named Smaxey became the mascot. Quick Draw McGraw The
Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc. ( ) was an American animation studio and production company which was active from 1957 to 2001. It was founded on July 7, 1957, by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera following the decision of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to c ...
cartoon horse
sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...
,
Quick Draw McGraw Quick Draw McGraw is a fictional anthropomorphic horse and the protagonist and title character of ''The Quick Draw McGraw Show''. He is a white horse, wearing a red Stetson cowboy hat, a red holster belt, a light blue bandana, and occasion ...
, took over in 1961. The Smackin' Bandit In 1965, Quick Draw McGraw faced off against The Smackin' Bandit, a llama who traveled in bounding leaps, and would suck the cereal directly out of the box with its floppy lips. The Smackin' Brothers In 1966, the Smackin' Brothers, two cartoon boys who loved to roughhouse, became the new mascots. These ads usually featured the brothers wanting Sugar Smacks but winding up smacking each other instead. Also during 1966, promotional box designs were briefly introduced featuring characters from ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the eponymous 1960s television series and quickly became a worldwide pop-culture phenomenon. The franchise has expanded into vari ...
''. Later commercials were similar to most
Cheerios Cheerios is a brand of cereal manufactured by General Mills in the United States, consisting of pulverized oats in the shape of a solid torus. In some countries, including the United Kingdom, Cheerios is marketed by Cereal Partners under the Ne ...
commercials as they demonstrated how the cereal was "vitamin-powered".
Paul Frees Solomon Hersh "Paul" Frees (June 22, 1920November 2, 1986) was an American actor, comedian, impressionist, and vaudevillian. He is known for his work on Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Walter Lantz, Rankin/Bass, and Walt Disney theatrical cartoons during ...
narrated these ads. Dig'em Frog In the early 1970s, an Indian Chief appeared briefly, replaced by Dig'em Frog in 1972. He continued as the mascot when the cereal was rechristened Honey Smacks in the early 1980s. In these ads, Dig'em would appear in front of a group of kids, and they would eat some cereal together. Love Smacks This character was a heart shaped dog, which was featured in 1982 giving hugs to children. Wally the Bear Dig 'em was replaced by an animal more associated with
honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of plants (primar ...
, Wally the Bear, in 1986 (1984 in France). These ads featured Wally (not to be confused with the Wally Bear from ''
Wally Bear and the NO! Gang ''Wally Bear and the NO! Gang'' is an educational Nintendo Entertainment System game that was released in 1992 exclusively for a North American audience. It was not licensed by Nintendo. The game teaches children to say no to potentially harmful d ...
'') pestering a kid eating a bowl of Honey Smacks and doing anything to get some, and the kid would always refuse or just ignore Wally completely. Animated by Kurtz & Friends, these commercials performed poorly since they seemed too much like the Trix commercials, and Dig'em Frog was brought back the following year by popular demand. Dig'em Frog (redux) During the 1990s, advertising campaigns for the cereal featured Dig'em attempting to have a bowl of Smacks while trying to outsmart his nemesis, Kitty. By 1997, these commercials were discontinued. Dig'em's voice was provided by
Len Dresslar Elmer "Len" Dresslar Jr. (March 25, 1925 – October 16, 2005) was an American voice actor and vocalist. He is best known as the deep Bass (vocal range), bass voice of the Jolly Green Giant in commercials for General Mills. Early life He serve ...
and later
Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...
. While ads for Honey Smacks no longer air in the US, more recent ads in other countries depict Dig'em as a character who is crazily addicted to Smacks.


Similar products

*
Post Post or POST commonly refers to: *Mail, the postal system, especially in Commonwealth of Nations countries **An Post, the Irish national postal service **Canada Post, Canadian postal service **Deutsche Post, German postal service **Iraqi Post, Ira ...
's
Golden Crisp Golden Crisp, also known as Sugar Crisp in Canada, is a brand of breakfast cereal made by Post Consumer Brands that consists of sweetened, candy-coated puffed wheat and is noted for its high sugar content. It was introduced in the US in 1948. Hi ...
*
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...
's
Sugar Puffs Honey Monster Puffs are a honey-flavoured breakfast cereal made from sugar-coated wheat sold in the United Kingdom. The cereal was originally sold as Sugar Puffs, but was re-branded in 2014. It was labeled as Honey Monster Sugar Puffs for a t ...
* Malt-O-Meal's Golden Puffs *
Aldi Aldi (stylised as ALDI) is the common company brand name of two German multinational family-owned discount supermarket chains operating over 10,000 stores in 20 countries. The chain was founded by brothers Karl and Theo Albrecht in 1946, when t ...
stores sell a similar product called ''Honey Wheat Puffs'' manufactured under the Millville brand.


References


External links

*
Video footage of the product's black-&-white launch commercial
ead {{Kellogg's Kellogg's cereals Products introduced in 1953