These classic Halloween cereals were on the shelf in Circleville, Ohio in August. It has been years since I tasted these very sweet General Mills goodies but I’m tempted every time I see them.
I don’t typically eat cereal and I certainly don’t believe in this level of junk food for breakfast but, man, did these boxes bring back some memories.
Count Chocula and Franken Berry debuted in 1971 and were pioneers as the first chocolate and strawberry cereals on the market. Boo Berry came along the following year. There were eventually two other General Mills cereals inspired by classic horror film characters – Yummy Mummy and Fruit Brute – which are no longer in production.
When I was a kid they were available year round but today are only sold late summer through Halloween so better stock up while you can!
If you’re interested, General Mills published a web story in 2021 that shares a little about the original illustrations of the characters, recalls their status as pop culture icons and there’s even a tv commercial. Click here to read that story.
All of this talk of classic cereals marketed to kids has reminded me of Smurf Berry Crunch, another character driven cereal from my early eighties childhood. It also was made by General Mills as a delicious treat to enjoy while watching Saturdays morning cartoons.
What was your favorite cereal as a kid?
Great to see these things. When i was a child tey used to put plastic toys in the cereal to attract us. Names like Sugar Smacks and Sugar Puff spring to mind. The amounts of sugar in those days would have been huge. And the daft thing was we were told not to eat sweets because they’ll rot your teeth but we were given bowls of cereal for health.
They bring back a lot of memories! At the same time, it is worth keeping an eye on the nutrition label as most of these are packed with around 10 grams of sugar per serving!
I used to love Count Chocula as a kid!
Fun childhood memories! I’ll see if they have them at my grocery.