TOP U.S. BRANDS CHANGING INGREDIENTS
Ingredient data all within the last 12 months
It’s Not You, It’s Them
Have you ever noticed there are many foods and drinks from your childhood that don't taste the way they used to? Maybe you have some favorite item in particular which you wistfully remember. The product is still here today, but it’s just not the same. There’s something about it that’s not quite right. Well . . . it’s not you, it’s them.
The reason they don't taste the way you remember is because the ingredients have changed.
Almost all of the #1 brands in the U.S. have changed their ingredients from what they were originally.
Things Have Changed
There is an episode of Showtime’s Billions where billionaire Bobby Axelrod takes some time to share an experience from his own childhood with his two sons >> a cherished memory built around eating a special YumTime snack every day as a reward when he finished his paper route.
So, Bobby is very excited about these particular snacks but, when he shares one with his sons, he is literally distraught and disillusioned.
What has happened to my favorite childhood snack!?
It turns out that the snack company slowly changed the ingredients from Sugar and no preservatives, to things like Corn Syrup and Polysorbate, for financial reasons. So, Bobby decides to buy part of YumTime and force them to go back to the original recipe which used real Sugar and didn’t contain chemical ingredients.
It’s illuminating to hear the reasons why one of the board members of the snack company thinks it’s a crazy idea to use the original ingredients . . .
“Do you have any idea of the cost of returning to the old recipes?”
“We can’t remain competitive.”
“That would destroy profits!”
Although Billions is fictional, the show’s success is linked to the writers’ awesome abilities to nail real human history.
THEN vs. NOW INGREDIENT COMPARISONS
When we compare the ingredients of iconic #1 U.S. products — what they contained decades ago to what they contain today — we see multiple ingredient changes.
As you look at these products below, note the most common ingredient changes:
Removal of Fresh Ingredients
Change from Sugar to High Fructose Corn Syrup
Addition of Sweeteners
Addition of Water
Addition of Natural Flavors
Change to Soybean Oil
Addition of Chemical Preservatives, notably Citric Acid*
*Unless specifically noted as ‘Naturally-derived Citric Acid’, Manufactured Citric Acid is not from citrus fruit, it is created using Aspergillus Niger (a.k.a. black mold). Source: U.S. National Library of Medicine/National Institutes of Health
Reminder: Ingredients are Listed in Descending Order of Amount. There is the most amount of the ingredient listed first and the least amount of the ingredient listed last.
OCEAN SPRAY CRANBERRY SAUCE
HEINZ KETCHUP
PEARL MILLING COMPANY SYRUP (formerly Aunt Jemima)
OREO
HELLMANN’S/BEST FOODS MAYONNAISE
POP-TARTS
CAMPBELL’S SOUP
RITZ CRACKERS
THOMAS’ ENGLISH MUFFINS
JELL-O GELATIN
COCA-COLA
COOL WHIP
VELVEETA
HERSHEY’S SYRUP
CHIPS AHOY!
NILLA WAFERS
HONEY NUT CHEERIOS
GIRL SCOUTS THIN MINTS COOKIES
KRAFT MACARONI & CHEESE
GORTON’S FISH STICKS
REESE’S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS
HAWAIIAN PUNCH
FANTA ORANGE SODA
HERSHEY’S BAR
Q: What’s the big deal with High Fructose Corn Syrup?
If you’re trying to eat better, if you’re in food or beverage marketing, if you have food allergies, a medical issue or simply a pressing curiosity about what’s in the foods we eat, please consider watching the Ingredient Inspector YouTube video on High Fructose Corn Syrup >> there are so many implications connected to the rising use of Corn Syrups that it is worth taking the few minutes for a basic understanding of the numerous concerns on multiple levels.
See ingredient changes parent company Amazon has made to their Whole Foods 365 products:
Q: How do you feel after seeing all these changes?
Let us know if there are any favorite childhood products whose ingredients you suspect may have changed and we will investigate.
Discover food + beverages whose ingredients are Closest To Homemade in 275+ categories >> products whose ingredients are closest to those we would use at home to make the item from scratch. Neither money nor products are ever accepted to appear on the Closest To Homemade list.
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